My Chef and I
by zxcblue
Summary: Rui Mikami, the Angel Prince, avoids his responsibilities as the next heir of Angel Realm. He instead wants to pursue his passion for cooking. He entered a prestigious cooking competition and beat Kida, an aspiring demon chef, unfairly. They meet again when Kida agreed to be his "betrothed" to pay her loan for entering the cooking competition.
1. Chapter 1

_(This story is dedicated to **kidagakaush**, who is also the main lead of this requested story. I hope that you'll like this and have fun reading!)_

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

_The high ranking officials of Angel Realm were discussing about Prince Rui's future as the next king of the said realm._

Minister of Treasury "What are we going to do about the rumors going around in the Angel Realm? If we let this pass through the ears of the king, we're dead!"

Minister of Civil Affairs "Then do you have any suggestions about Prince Rui's possible marriage talks? He's driving me crazy! He doesn't even paying attention to the women's profiles presented to him. He just disregarded it without looking at them once!"

Grand Adviser "I agree! He even rejected my beautiful daughter!"

Minister of Internal Affairs "We cannot blame those women he rejected to spread the ridiculous rumor about him."

Minister of Culture and Arts "Maybe he's just waiting for the right woman to come."

Minister of Justice "But, do you not really believe the rumor? You know, that he prefers men over women."

Grand Adviser "How shameful of you to believe that, Minister! I know him well, he's definitely a straight one!"

Minister of Treasury "Prince Rui is not an ordinary angel that he needs to wait for his potential bride to come into his life. He's the only heir to the throne!"

Minister of Civil Affairs "We have to come up with the solution about his future bride to stop the rumors from spreading. What if we will also accept demon women as candidates?"

Minister of Justice "Demon women? And then what? What will you do if the offspring is a demon, and not an angel?"

Minister of Internal Affairs "Surely the Demon Realm will make fun of us."

Minister of Culture and Arts "The angel women are not interested in him anymore, after hearing from others about his total rejection."

Grand Adviser "Then what the heck are we going to do about him?! Ugh, that stubborn young man."

* * *

_Despite the false rumor about him, Rui didn't mind anything about it. Thus, he continued to cook different dishes in the kitchen._

Angel King "Rui."

Rui "Your Highness." _ He stopped cleaning the clams._

Angel King "What are you doing here? We have plenty of cooks, so why bother?"

Rui "You know me, Father. I want to cook something I'd like to eat. Right, what would you like to eat, Father? I'll cook it for you." _He continued to clean the clams._

Angel King "What are you going to cook?"

Rui "Vongole."

Angel King "Vongole? I'll try them, too."

Rui "Yes, your Highness!"

Angel King "Perhaps, you've already heard the rumor about you, right?"

Rui "Y-Yeah... So, you already knew it, Father?"

Angel King "That is not true, is it?"

Rui "Of course not, Father! I'm a real man! I just don't want to get married for now, so what makes me not a man for that reason, huh?"

Angel King "Seriously...? You have heard of it, and yet you didn't do anything?" _And he hit Rui on his head._

Rui "Ow! That hurts! Why did you hit me?"

Angel King "Set your thoughts straight, young man! You're not an ordinary angel who can do what he wants to do. You have a big responsibility to this realm in the future, got it?"

Rui "But I want to become a chef, Father." _ He lighted the stove on._

Angel King "What?! You're the next king of Angel Realm, so how could you think of other things?"

Rui "I don't even want to think of it."

Angel King "What did you say?!"

Rui "N-Nothing, Father! Just wait for the Vongole, okay?"

_The king let out a big sigh._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

_A long, red-haired woman was stirring the freshly cooked pasta on the pan and tried it._

Mother "So, how's it this time?"

Kida "Um, there's still something missing."

Mother "There is still?"

Kida "What should I do? Do I have to do this over?"

Mother "Of course. You wanted to learn how to cook it, right?"

Kida "I didn't expect this to be this difficult."

Mother "That's why you just have to give up, okay? Why do you want to learn how to cook that bad?"

Kida "Just because."

Mother "Don't tell me, it's still about him?"

_Kida didn't answer, but she tightly held the fork as if she's upset._

* * *

**~Demon House~**

_Meguru brought the dishes on the dining table._

Haruhito "Wow! As expected from the elite chef!"

Satoru "Thanks for cooking the hotpot for me, Meguru."

Meguru "Welcome! Please enjoy yourselves. Is Brother not yet home?"

Shiki "He's not yet here."

Meguru "He sure likes to overexert himself, huh?" _ He sat down on the chair._

_The demons began to eat dinner._

Haruhito "How's the restaurant today, Meggy?"

Meguru "It's fine. The customers were flooding everyday."

Satoru "Good for you then."

Meguru "Yeah. Life here on human realm is less stressful than in Demon Realm."

Shiki "Is that so?"

Meguru "Yeah. I don't have to worry about Father's wishes or whatsoever. Brother can take care of the palace very well."

Haruhito "Agreed. By the way, I heard from Kakeru that your restaurant will hold a cooking competition?"

Meguru "Yeah, we will. It will be held next week."

Haruhito "Can we enter?"

Shiki "We? With whom?"

Haruhito "With Satoru!"

Satoru "Eh?"

Meguru "You two?"

Haruhito "Of course! I'm planning on changing my job here in human realm."

Satoru "Why would you drag me into this?"

Haruhito "Come on, Satoru. Let's just give it a try!"

Satoru "And we're competing against humans?"

Haruhito "What's wrong with humans?"

Meguru "You sure, Haruhito?"

Haruhito "Yeah! Satoru, too!"

Shiki "Sheesh."

_Kakeru opened the door._

Kakeru "I'm home."

Meguru "You're here, Brother."

Kakeru "I'm going to eat now."

_Meguru gave him his dish._

Meguru "Um, about the competition..."

Haruhito "Yeah, we're entering it."

Satoru "Seriously?"

Meguru "Okay, I will list Haruhito and Satoru's names then."

Kakeru "What are you guys talking about?"

Meguru "Brother, these two will enter the cooking competition in our restaurant."

Kakeru "Really? You should do a good job, then. How about you, Shiki?"

Shiki "Not interested."

Haruhito "Come on, Shiki. It's fun!"

Shiki "But I don't know how to cook."

Kakeru "Right, about the contest, Meguru..."

Meguru "Yes?"

Kakeru "Rui wants to join, too."

Haruhito "Prince Rui, too?"

Meguru "Really?"

Kakeru "Yeah, that's what he said to me earlier."

Haruhito "He's into cooking, too?"

Meguru "Got it, no problem."

Haruhito "What's the prize of the winner?"

Meguru "Well, the winner has the opportunity to work with me in the kitchen."

Kakeru "That's awesome."

Meguru "You can come tomorrow at the restaurant and I'll give you the mechanics."

Haruhito "Got it."

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

_Kida was roaming around the town with her friend._

Saika "Why here in human realm?"

Kida "Humans have a large variety of cuisines compared to ours or to angel's. I think it's better to learn cooking here because of that reason."

Saika "That makes sense. Here in Japan, that restaurant has the highest reputation and positive feedback among humans."

Kida "Where?"

Saika "That restaurant, The Botanical Garden."

_Kida looked at the restaurant's exterior._

Saika "It looks really nice, isn't it? Oh?"

Kida "Why?"

Saika "Kida, look!" _She pointed out the poster on the wall._

Kida "A cooking competition?"

Saika "Yeah! Why don't you try, Kida?"

Kida "Am I really capable of entering such contest?"

Saika "I know that you're already an expert when it comes to baking, but you can still work out your skill in cooking for this contest. Look, the winner will be a chef at this restaurant! Isn't that great? This is already your opportunity, Kida. You shouldn't put your hard work into waste."

_Kida looked at the poster intensely._

Saika "So, are you going to enter, or not?"

_She took a deep breath._

Kida "Okay, I'll enter."

Saika "That's right! Let's go inside now!" _ She grabbed Kida upon entering the restaurant._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

Butler "Your Highness, the meeting will start in a few minutes."

Rui "Tell them I can't come. Besides, Father will be there."

Butler "Prince Rui, your Highness has personally ordered me to say it to you."

Rui "Ugh, but I still have to practice for the competition! Damn it." _He arranged the cooking utensils on the rack._

Butler "I'll be waiting for you, Prince Rui."

Rui "Fine. Sheesh."

* * *

_Before the meeting has started, Rui sat beside his father._

Angel King "Since Prince Rui's already here, let's start."

Grand Adviser "Yes, your Highness."

Angel King "Before anything else, I would like to discuss with you about the bad rumor spreading in the whole Angel Realm."

_The officials were surprised and they were whispering at each other._

Grand Adviser "Quiet!"

_The king cleared his throat before speaking._

Angel King "Yes, I know that you all worked hard to hide the rumor from me, but you failed to do so. Anyway, Prince Rui is here and I'll give him time to defend himself."

Rui "Yes, your Highness."

_He stood up and walked at the center._

Rui "I'm sorry to put the realm in a shameful situation. However, I'm here to clear my name and my reputation to everyone. I am a real man. I'm aware of my responsibilities as the next king of Angel Realm, but I can still fulfill all of them without having a wife beside me."

_The officials kept on talking with each other._

Rui "What I'm saying is, I'm not yet ready to get married. There's a time and place for everything. So what if I had rejected so many women as my future wife? It doesn't mean that I'm not into them. Besides, I still have one dream to fulfill."

Minister of Civil Affairs "A dream?"

Rui "Yes, and that is to become a chef."

Minister of Treasury "A... chef?"

Angel King "This kid!"

Rui "I have a deal for all of you. I am going to enter a cooking competition in human realm and if I win, there will be no marriage talks for me anymore unless I will put interest on it. However, if I lost..."

_Everyone was waiting for his statement to finish._

Rui "I will quit my passion for cooking and I will take the marriage talks seriously."

_Everyone was shocked._

Angel King "Is that true?"

Rui "Mark my word, your Highness. Please just give me this chance."

_The king stared at him seriously._

Angel King "Do you really want to do it?"

Rui "Yes." _He bowed his head in front of the king._

Angel King "All right."

Minister of Justice "But your Highness..."

Angel King "Just this once, people. Let him be."

Rui "Thank you, your Highness!" _He smiled cheerfully._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

_Kida was placing her cooked pasta dish on the plate._

Kida "This should be perfect."

_She tasted it, but she didn't show any emotion._

Mother "Kida?"

Kida "Oh, Mom."

Mother "Still cooking?"

Kida "Hmm."

Mother "And so?"

Kida "I couldn't make it. I couldn't perfect the dish."

Mother "It's late. You still have tomorrow."

Kida "No, I can't. This is the dish I'm going to cook in the contest."

Mother "You're joining a cooking contest? Where?"

Kida "In human realm."

Mother "Huh? Hey, look at me."

Kida "Why? I'm in a hurry."

Mother "Why are you trying so hard to cook and you even hate it? Tell me."

Kida "No..."

Mother "If you're still hoping that he will return to you, then stop it. Stop this now!"

Kida "I can't."

Mother "Do you know why you can't perfect your dish?"

_Kida remained silent as she was looking down._

Mother "It's because you don't really like cooking. You even hate it. You're not putting your whole heart into it. Changing your objective is the only way you will get motivated in cooking, Kida." _She then left._

_Kida was left alone in the kitchen, finishing the dish, while her emerald eyes became teary and turned to red._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_The king went to the kitchen but he was shocked to see an unfamiliar man._

Angel King "Who are you?!"

Rui "Huh? What do you mean, Father?"

Angel King "Rui?!"

_Rui's blonde hair became black all of a sudden._

Rui "You surprised me, Father."

Angel King "What happened to your hair?"

Rui "Oh, that's... I need to change my image when going to human realm."

Angel King "I don't understand you at all. Oh? Your eyes, too?"

Rui "Yeah. I got this from human realm. Humans called these contact lenses. It enhances your vision and changes the color of iris, too. Brown ones suit me well, right?"

Angel King "Well, whatever; but don't forget our deal."

_Rui smiled at him confidently._

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

**Supermarket**

_Kida was putting her items on the counter. After paying, she went out of the supermarket with grocery bags on both hands._

Kida "These sure are heavy, huh."

_As she was about to cross the road, a dog came near her and sniffing on the grocery bags._

Kida "Hey, stay away!"

_The dog didn't bulge and continued to sniff._

Kida "Oh no, he found the beef. Stay away, will you?!"

_She kicked the dog, but it barked at her. She was terrified so she decided to run away, but the dog chased her._

Kida "Oh no!" Somebody help!"

_She continued to run but she accidentally fell on the ground and the other ingredients came out from the bag and rolled over. The dog was about to attack, but a tomato hit its head. The stubborn dog finally ran away._

Kida "My groceries!"

Rui "Are you okay?"

_Kida surprisingly looked at the man who saved her, and he smiled at her._


	2. Chapter 2

Rui "Are you okay?" _He offered his hand to her._

Kida "Yeah, I'm fine." _She took his hand and stood up._

_Rui helped her picked the produce scattered on the ground._

Rui "Oh, these tomatoes were crushed already."

Kida "Where? Oh no. I have to buy again!"

Rui "Let me go with you."

Kida "Huh?"

Rui "You're going to the supermarket again, right?"

Kida "Yeah, I have to."

Rui "Good thing. I will go there, too."

Kida "Really?"

Rui "If that's okay with you, of course."

Kida "I don't mind."

_Rui smiled gently._

* * *

**~Supermarket~**

Rui "What were the damaged ingredients?"

Kida "The tomatoes, and the red onions, too... I guess."

Rui "Here, the tomatoes." _He gave her two big tomatoes._

Kida "Um, not those. I need cherry tomatoes, to be exact."

Rui "Oh? Here they are, then." _ He sniffed on them one by one._

Kida "Um, what are you doing?"

Rui "I'm just looking for the best ones. They should give the sweet, woody smell. You should select the deeply colored ones, too."

Kida "I see. (This guy looks like a pro.) I learned something. Thank you."

Rui "Here." _He placed the tomatoes on her small shopping cart._

_Kida picked some red onions and placed them on the cart._

Rui "Be careful on your way out, okay?"

Kida "Sure, thanks again!"

_He smiled and Kida turned back._

Kida "Oh, by the way..."

Rui "Yes?"

Kida "You're an angel, right?"

_Rui was surprised._

Rui "You knew?"

Kida "I'm a demon." _She smiled gently and finally left._

* * *

Kida "What is an angel doing here? Never mind. I am here too, anyway."

_She happily crossed the road when someone saw her._

Kakeru "Huh? Kida?"

_Kakeru was looking at her until she disappeared._

Kakeru "I'm sure it was her."

* * *

_She rang the doorbell in front of her. Then, Saika opened the door._

Kida "I'm here!"

Saika "Kida, your mother came here earlier."

Kida "Mom? Why?"

Saika "I don't know. She was looking for you."

Kida "Sheesh. I need to practice for the competition. There's not enough time."

Saika "Just go. It won't take you a lot of time."

_She sighed heavily._

* * *

**~Demon House~**

Meguru "Guys, I need to go to work now."

Haruhito "Bye, Meggy."

Meguru "Good luck on your practice!"

_Meguru was startled to see Kakeru in front of him._

Meguru "Brother? Have you forgotten something?"

Kakeru "Meguru, I saw her."

_Satoru and the others stopped on what they were doing._

Meguru "Who...?"

Kakeru "Kida. I saw her here in human realm."

_Everyone looked at Meguru to see his reaction._

Meguru "Um..." _He became sad all of a sudden._

Satoru "Where did you see her, Kakeru?"

Kakeru "Along the street. I think she went shopping."

Haruhito "Why not go after her, Meggy?"

Shiki "I think it's time for the two of you to sort things out."

Kakeru "Shiki is right, Meguru."

Meguru "But I'm afraid that she would avoid me."

Haruhito "Trying won't hurt you, though."

Satoru "Yeah, so that things will be clearer for you both."

Meguru "Um, I'll go now. Bye." _ And he left._

Haruhito "What's wrong with him?"

_Kakeru shrugged._

* * *

_On his way, Meguru was deeply thinking of Kakeru's words._

**Flashback from three years ago**

_Meguru was covering Kida's eyes using his hands._

Kida "We're here already?"

Meguru "Just a little more."

Kida "Okay..."

Meguru "I'll remove my hands now, but don't open your eyes until you're told, okay?"

Kida "All right."

_Meguru removed his hands from her._

Meguru "Open your eyes at the count of three. One, two... three!"

_She slowly opened her eyes and was astonished to see a Baked Alaska in front of her._

Kida "Wow...! It's pretty!"

Meguru "Happy birthday!"

_Her delighted eyes were looking at the cake._

Kida "Whoa! This is really awesome! Thanks, Meguru!" _She kissed him on his cheek._

Meguru "The most special cake for my most special someone. Make a wish and blow the candle now."

Kida "Okay!" _She smiled happily as she closed her eyes and then blew the candle. They clapped their hands._

Meguru "I prepared some dishes, too." _He placed some dish platters on the counter._

Kida "You mean, you cooked all of these?"

Meguru "Of course! This is all for you."

Kida "Thank you so much! But how are we going to finish all of these?"

Meguru "Do you want to invite Kakeru and others now?"

Kida "That's a good idea!"

Meguru "No way."

Kida "Huh?"

Meguru "No. I won't."

Kida "Huh? Why?"

Meguru "Don't you want me alone to be with you?"

Kida "Umm, of course I want to."

Meguru "Then let's not call them."

_She smirked and pinched his cheeks._

Meguru "Ow!"

_They laughed happily while serving the food._

* * *

_The next morning..._

Kida "Good morning."

Meguru "Good morning. Please sit down."

Kida "I smell something good. What are you cooking?"

Meguru "Mushroom soup."

Kida "Wow, that sounds delicious!"

Meguru "Come here. I'll teach you how to cook this."

Kida "Huh? No, it's okay. There's no need for me to learn cooking since you're already there." _She was pressing the buttons on the remote._

Meguru "Oh, okay." _He continued stirring the soup._

* * *

_Someone knocked on the door._

Kida "Coming!"

_A postman gave an envelope to her._

Postman "Please sign here."

Kida "Okay. Thanks."

_The postman left and she closed the door._

Meguru "Who is it?"

Kida "This letter is addressed to you, Meguru."

Meguru "For me?"

_He got the envelope and opened it. He was surprised to see the letter's content._

Kida "Why? What is it?" _She peeked at the letter._

Meguru "I won? Is this true?"

Kida "Won? You mean, at the competition?"

_Meguru was happy as he shouted with full of energy._

Meguru "Kida! Look! I won at the competition!"

Kida "R-Really?! That's great! I'm so happy for you, Meguru! Congratulations!"

Meguru "Yeah! I can't believe it!"

Kida "Hey, what's the prize?"

_Meguru stopped smiling._

Kida "Hmm?"

Meguru "It's to study in a place called Italy in human realm. For three years."

Kida "Three... years...?"

Meguru "Yeah! Isn't that awesome? Finally, my dream will come true! I'm so happy, Kida!"

Kida "Where is Italy, Meguru? Is it near from here?"

Meguru "Um, Italy is quite far from Japan."

Kida "Far?"

_Meguru took out his phone and opened a world map application._

Meguru "You see, this is where we are now in human realm. This is Japan, and here is Italy."

Kida "You mean, you're going to go and stay there for three years?"

Meguru "Yes, to study cooking and to become an executive chef!"

_Kida's expression became worse._

Meguru "What's wrong?"

Kida "What about us then?"

Meguru "What?"

Kida "What will happen to us, Meguru?"

Meguru "We can still communicate with each other, Kida."

Kida "So it's fine with you to be apart from me for three years?"

_Meguru was taken aback._

Meguru "But this is my dream, Kida. And finally, I will be able to reach it. Please understand me. I don't want to leave you like this; I will still return to you. Don't worry. I am always faithful to you. We'll still keep in touch."

Kida "Then let me go with you."

Meguru "Huh? But..."

Kida "Cannot be?"

Meguru "Will your family allow you to come with me?"

_Kida didn't answer and she just looked down._

Kida "I couldn't believe this..."

Meguru "Kida..."

Kida "You're choosing cooking over me?"

Meguru "No, that's not it..."

_Kida left the kitchen and went back to her room._

Meguru "Kida!" _He sadly gazed at the letter._

* * *

**~Demon House~**

_Satoru was surprised to open the door._

Satoru "Kida?"

Kida "Let's have a drink, Satoru!"

Satoru "What?"

Kida "Where's everyone?" _She entered the house._

Satoru "But..."

Shiki "Oh? You're here."

Kida "Shiki! Call others and let's drink!"

_Shiki was startled._

Satoru "Why are you behaving like this? Something happened?"

Kida "What's wrong with drinking, huh?" _She sat on the carpet and placed the bottles on the glass table._

Shiki "Did you and Meguru quarrel? Does he know about this?"

Kida "Who is he? Hey, stop asking me nonsense questions. Just drink with me."

_The two demons looked at each other._

Satoru "Positive. Why did you guys quarrel?"

_Shiki and Satoru sat on the carpet as well._

Kida "Hey, Satoru; don't act like you don't want to drink, okay? Here's your beer. Shiki, yours too." _She opened the bottles._

Shiki "Sheesh."

Kida "I bought some crackers, too. Here."

Haruhito "Oh? What's with this drinking session in the middle of the day?"

Kida "Haru! Here's your beer!"

Haruhito "I'll call Meguru."

Kida "You better not, Haruhito!"

Haruhito "But you're not allowed to drink. You're allergic, Kida."

Kida "I don't really care."

Satoru "Whoa! What a stubborn demon we have here."

Shiki "Tell us what happened."

_Kida drank the beer._

Kida "Guys, what's so great being a chef?"

Haruhito "A chef?"

Kida "What's in there that Meguru chooses being a chef than to be with me?" _Her tears began to fall slowly._

Satoru "Oh no."

Haruhito "Why are you saying that?"

Kida "Meguru will go to Italy and stay there for three years."

Shiki "What? Italy?"

Satoru "Three years?"

Kida "It's a place far from Japan, guys. He will study culinary arts there and then he'll become a chef." _She continued to drink._

Satoru "Hey, stop drinking now, Kida. You're about to empty the bottle."

Kida "I cannot go with him there. What am I going to do then?!" _She broke down into tears._

_The demons looked at her, worried._

* * *

**~Kansai International Airport~**

_The demons accompanied Meguru on his way to Italy._

Kakeru "Good luck on your career, Meguru."

Haruhito "Be sure to chat us often!"

Shiki "Take care."

Satoru "Send us pictures, too."

Meguru "Everyone, thank you!"

Haruhito "Is Kida coming here or not?"

_Meguru became quiet._

Kakeru "Are you okay?"

Meguru "Yes, I'm fine, Brother. I have to go now."

Satoru "Bye, Meguru!"

Kida "Meguru!"

_Meguru and the others turned their back to see Kida._

Meguru "Kida...?"

Kida "Why didn't you wait for me?!"

Meguru "I'm sorry. I thought you won't come."

Kida "Take care always, okay?"

Meguru "Don't worry, I'll always call you, or chat you when I get there. Please don't think of anything else, okay?"

Kida "I will. I will wait for you!"

_They hugged each other._

Meguru "I have to go now. I love you, Kida."

Kida "I love you too."

_Meguru finally bade his farewell to everyone._

* * *

_At first, Meguru was always keeping in touch with Kida. However, as the time has gone by, their communication had lessen and eventually, Meguru had not been able to communicate with her after a year, after two years, and the time after that._

**End of the flashback**

* * *

_Kida finished her plating by wiping the excess sauce using a kitchen towel. She then smiled satisfyingly while staring at the pasta dish._

Kida "(This is my winning dish. With this, I will definitely see for myself why it is so great to be a chef.)"_ Her triumphant smile has vanished._

* * *

_Meanwhile, Rui served his pasta dish on a clean, white plate. He twirled the tongs while putting the pasta on the plate, then he placed the clams on it._

Rui "Vongole, please help me win this competition." _He smiled happily._

* * *

_The first day of The Botanical Garden's cooking competition has finally come. The aspiring chefs gathered in the big, elegant kitchen of the said restaurant._

Kakeru "Haruhito, Satoru, good luck!"

Haruhito "Thanks Kakeru and Sheeks for coming!"

Satoru "It would be nice if you have prepared some banners to cheer us on."

Shiki "Such a hassle."

Haruhito "We have to go now."

_On the other side of the restaurant, Kida and Saika arrived._

Saika "The competition is about to start! Go now! Hurry!"

Kida "All right! Bye!" _She ran towards the kitchen._

* * *

Manager "Is everyone already here?"

_The contestants positioned themselves to their respective stations._

Manager "Welcome to The Botanical Garden's cooking competition! I would like to thank all of you for participating in this competition. The grand winner will be hired as a chef in our restaurant, the most prestigious Italian restaurant here in Japan, so please give the best of your ability to be recognized as a talented chef."

_Haruhito noticed Kida beside the station beside him._

Haruhito "Kida?"

Manager "This is the elimination round of the contest. In this round, you should make a dessert that we will tell you to do. The dessert corresponds to 20 points. The ingredients and the recipe are already on your counters. It's up to you to put some spice on your dish as an advantage. But before we begin, I would like to say good luck to all of you and congratulations!"

_Everyone gave him a round of applause._

Manager "So, the dessert that you will cook is..."

_Rui listened carefully._

Manager "Ricotta Cheesecake!"

Kida "Ricotta Cheesecake?"

Manager "We will only give you 1 hour to cook. The timer starts now!" _The bell rang._

_Kida, Rui and their fellow contestants were busy preparing and cooking the said dessert. After an hour, the bell rang again._

Manager "Time's up! Contestants, please keep off your hands on the kitchen."

Rui has finally noticed Kida.

Rui "Isn't that...?"

Manager "Please put your desserts here on the table."

_The contestants formed two lines and placed their dishes by pair. __As Rui and Kida placed their desserts on the table, they looked at each other, surprised._

Kida "Huh?!"

Rui "It's you..."

Kida "Tomato?!"


	3. Chapter 3

_Rui smiled when Kida called him as 'tomato'. After they put their dishes on the table, they went back to their stations, waiting for the announcement of the winners._

Kida "(Figures, he's a chef, too. The way he was saying something about tomatoes, he seems like he's a pro.)" _She was thinking while glancing at him._

Rui "(I never thought that I'll see her here.)"

_The restaurant chefs tasted the ten desserts and wrote their evaluations. They gave their papers to the manager. After a while, the manager went to the center._

Manager "I will now announce the top 5 contestants that prepared the best Ricotta Cheesecake."

_The contestants paid attention to the announcement._

Manager "The chef who cooked the most delicious Ricotta Cheesecake is..."

_He opened the envelope and read the result._

Manager "The only female contestant, Miss Kida Akina!"

_Kida was very surprised when her name was called, while the other contestants looked at her as they applauded._

Satoru "K-Kida Akina?"

Haruhito "I knew it. It's really her."

Rui "So she's Kida."_ He smiled._

Manager "Your cheesecake is very creamy and at the same time, the texture is lighter compared to others. Our chefs here liked the result of cream cheese that became less predominant. Overall, your dessert is worth two thumbs up!"

Kida "Thank you."

Manager "Next in line is... Haruhito Amano!"

_Kida was shocked to hear Haruhito's name. She searched for him among the group, then she finally found him._

Manager "The third place goes to... Rui Nakamura!"

_Haruhito and Satoru were surprised to see Rui in a different image._

**Flashback**

Meguru "Is Prince Rui sure to enter the competition, Brother?"

Kakeru "Yeah, he is."

Meguru "All right. I'll write his name then."

Kakeru "Wait."

Meguru "Huh?"

Kakeru "He told me to change his surname."

Meguru "What?"

Kakeru "Change his surname to Nakamura."

Meguru "I see. I understand." _ Meguru erased the word 'Mikami' and changed it to 'Nakamura'._

**End of the flashback**

_The manager announced the top 4._

Manager "Okay, the last spot will be filled by... Satoru Kamagari!"

_Kida was surprised again to hear Satoru's name._

Manager "Congratulations to all who made into the top 5! For the remaining contestants, thank you for joining and don't give up on your dreams! The second round will resume this afternoon, so please get ready!"

_The other people were starting to leave the kitchen. Kida left too, while Satoru, Haruhito and Rui remained in the kitchen._

Rui "Haruhito, congratulations."

Haruhito "Prince Rui? Is it really you?"

Rui "Shhh, you can call me by my name."

Haruhito "I-I see. So you changed your family name, too."

Rui "Yeah, I'm just being careful. And this is...?"

Haruhito "This is Satoru, the vice-captain of our group."

Rui "Nice to meet you. I'm Rui, Prince of the Angel Realm."

Satoru "Likewise. I've known about you."

_Rui looked for Kida but he failed._

Rui "Let's head outside, shall we?"

Haruhito "Sure!"

* * *

_Kida was talking to her friend on the phone._

Kida "Yeah! I'll call you later! Thanks again! I'll hang up now."

Haruhito "Kida!"

_Kida was surprised to see Haruhito, Satoru and Rui together; while Rui was also shocked that they knew her._

Kida "H-Haruhito? Satoru?" _Her sight shifted to Rui._

Haruhito "It's been a while! We didn't expect to see you here."

Kida "M-Me too."

Rui "You know her?"

Kida "You know him?"

Satoru "Huh? Do you know each other?"

Kida "A bit..."

Rui "Nice to see you again, Miss Kida."

Kida "Yeah. And you are?"

Rui "Rui Nakamura. You have a nice name."

_Haruhito and Satoru were surprised when Rui introduced himself in a different name._

Rui "By the way, congratulations, Kida."

Kida "Thank you. Um, how's everyone?"

Satoru "They're okay! Kakeru and Shiki went here earlier to support us."

Kida "Is that so? That's good, then." _She smiled._

_Haruhito and Satoru continued to look at her, like waiting for her to ask a follow-up question._

Rui "Let's have lunch, guys. My treat!"

Haruhito "Really?"

Rui "Yeah."

Satoru "Deal. Kida, come with us, too."

Rui "Yeah, you must."

Kida "Oh... okay."

Rui "All right! Let's go."

Haruhito "I'll order the executive chef's specialty. How about you, Satoru?"

_Satoru widened his eyes as if he's stopping him to say more. __Kida walked in front of them, then Rui walked with her together._

Rui "By the way, why did you call me tomato?"

Kida "Huh? That's... It's because of the tomato you had thrown at that dog the other day."

Rui "Y-Yeah, I only introduced myself to you a while ago. Sorry." _He grinned._

Kida "It's okay." _She smiled timidly._

Haruhito "Satoru, do you think she knows that Meguru is the executive chef here?" _He whispered._

Satoru "I guess not. She wouldn't join the competition if she knows."

Haruhito "Right. Should we tell her about him?"

Satoru "No, it might affect her during the competition. You don't like to play dirty, do you?"

Haruhito "That's not what I meant, though. How about Meguru? Should we tell him?"

Satoru "Whatever. He will still find it out soon."

Haruhito "But still, of all the contests in this world, why cooking? We all know that she has no interest in it."

Satoru "I wonder, too."

* * *

_After lunch break, the second part of the cooking competition has begun._

Manager "Welcome to the second round, contestants! It is already a big step for you to be here. Now, for this round, you should choose your ingredients in our pantry in 60 seconds and prepare an Italian main dish. Get ready. One, two, three!"

_The five contestants selected and picked their ingredients as fast as they could. After the allotted time, they started doing their main dishes._

_Kida sprayed the 13x9-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray. Between pieces of plastic wrap or waxed paper, she placed each chicken breast smooth side down; gently pounded with flat side of meat mallet or rolling pin until it becomes 1/4 inch thick._

_Rui poured 2 teaspoons of oil in a nonstick skillet. He put his hand above the skillet to feel the heat. He then stirred the tomatoes, shallots, salt and pepper together. After enough stirring, he poured the red wine and stirred continuously._

___Haruhito placed the beef tenderloin steaks on rack in broiler pan. He brushed both sides of steaks with olive oil and sprinkled it with garlic salt. Then, he opened the oven and placed the steaks inside._

___Satoru added corn starch, honey, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to oven bag. He squeezed the bag to mix ingredients. After that, he sliced the pork tenderloin in 1 inch thick. He then placed the sliced pork and asparagus in the bag to mix them with sauce._

___The other contestant sprinkled both sides of steak with pepper and salt; brushed with oil. He heated the grill pan over medium-high heat until hot. He placed the steak to cook._

___In medium bowl, Kida mixed the spinach, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, basil and the garlic until blended. She spread about 1 tablespoon spinach mixture over each chicken breast and rolled up tightly. After other preparations, she placed the chicken inside the oven and set the temperature._

___In shallow bowl, Rui mixed the bread crumbs and cheese. In same skillet, he heated the remaining oil over medium heat. Then, he sprayed both sides of chicken with cooking spray and coated with bread crumb mixture. He finally cooked the chicken in oil._

_Haruhito broiled the meat with tops 4 to 6 inches from heat, turned once, until of desired doneness. After a while, he r__emoved the broiler pan from oven and sprinkled the steaks with tomatoes, basil and cheese._

_Satoru closed the bag with nylon tie. He cut six 1/2-inch slits in top and tucked ends of bag in pan. After that, he baked the pork._

_Meanwhile, in small bowl, the other contestant mixed the pesto, roasted peppers and lemon juice. He then cut the steak into thin slices._

* * *

_After one hour, the contestants stopped working and presented their Italian main dishes to the judges._

Manager "Okay, let's take a look at these savory Italian dishes made by our aspiring chefs. First contestant, what did you prepare for us?"

Contestant "My dish is called Pepper Steak with Roasted Red Pepper Pesto."

_The judges tasted the dish and wrote their evaluation after._

Manager "Thank you, Mister. Second contestant, please introduce your Italian dish."

Haruhito "This dish is called Cheesy Italian Tenderloin Steak. This is a steak topped with melted cheese, dried basil leaves and plum tomatoes."

_The judges did the same as the first dish. Next, Kida was asked to present her dish._

Kida "I will call this dish as Healthified Stuffed Chicken Parmesan. Similar to Chicken Cordon Bleu, the chicken breasts were rolled; however, they were stuffed by spinach, coated in bread crumbs and pasta sauce and melted Parmesan cheese on top."

_As usual, the judges tried her dish and they moved on to the next one._

Satoru "This is Honey Dijon Pork Tenderloin with Asparagus. Pork with honey sauce was paired with fresh asparagus and hot rice."

_The last to present his dish was Rui._

Rui "My dish is called Chicken Milanese with Fresh Tomato Sauce."

_Kida smiled when she heard him saying 'tomato'._

Rui "The chicken coated with bread crumbs and dipped in cheesy sauce makes it very tasty. I added tomatoes and fresh basil leaves, too."

_The judges lastly tasted Rui's dish._

Manager "These Italian dishes will surely ask you to eat more! Anyway, please wait for the results of the second round. Once again, thank you for participating and sharing your passion with us."

* * *

_After a while, the manager announced the two contestants that will proceed to the final round of the competition. They are Rui and Kida._

Manager "Congratulations to all of you and to our two remaining chefs, good luck to the final round! See you tomorrow!"

_Haruhito and Satoru congratulated the two._

Haruhito "Wow, Kida, you really improved your cooking skills, huh?"

Satoru "Yeah. You deserved it. You too, Rui."

Rui "Thanks everyone."

Kida "Thank you."

_Rui smiled sweetly at her._

Kida "Congratulations, tomato. Heehee."

Rui "Why do you keep on calling me tomato?"

_She covered her smirking face with her hands._

Rui "Hey." _He poked her hands._

_Haruhito and Satoru were observing the two._

* * *

**~Demon House~**

Haruhito "We're home."

Meguru "How's the competition?"

Satoru "We made it to the second round, but we lost."

Kakeru "Oh, that's a close call. But still, congratulations."

Shiki "Yeah. Reaching the second round is already great."

Haruhito "Thanks, Sheeks! You're the best!"

Kakeru "So who won? How about Rui?"

Haruhito "Yeah, Rui made it to the final round."

Meguru "Really? Prince Rui did?"

Satoru "Do you know who the opponent is?"

Kakeru "Who?"

Satoru "It's Kida."

_Meguru and the others were shocked._

Kakeru "Come again?"

Haruhito "Yeah. Kida Akina, Meguru's ex. We don't know what happened but, her cooking skills is brilliant. She even seized the top spot in desserts round."

_Meguru was left speechless._

* * *

Rui "I'll take you home."

Kida "Huh? No, it's okay. I can manage, Rui."

Rui "Really? Well, at least tell me your address."

Kida "Um, in Demon Realm?"

Rui "You're still going home there? You don't have any place to stay here?"

Kida "I have! At the Golden Palace Condominium."

Rui "Whoa, what a coincidence."

Kida "What?"

Rui "I stay there too, for the time being."

Kida "Really?"

Rui "Yeah! Are you going home now?"

Kida "Yes, I'm tired already. How about you?"

Rui "Me, too. Let's go together, shall we?"

_Kida smiled at him in response._

* * *

_As the elevator opened, they went out together._

Rui "Same floor?"

Kida "I guess so." _She chuckled._

Rui "Things are getting interesting, huh?"

Kida "What?"

Rui "N-Nothing. Oh, this one is my room. How about yours?"

Kida "That one, in front of the elevator."

Rui "I see. Go ahead and rest now. Let's see each other tomorrow, then."

Kida "Thank you. Have a good day."

_And they separated._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

Minister of Treasury "Any news about the prince's whereabouts?"

Grand Adviser "I heard that he qualified for the final round of the competition."

Minister of Civil Affairs "Is that so?"

Minister of Justice "I tried Prince Rui's cooking and it's world-class."

Minister of Internal Affairs "Really? What if he wins the competition? What will happen to Angel Realm's future?"

Minister of Culture and Arts "Time will come that he won't bear to leave the Angel Realm without a ruler."

Minister of Civil Affairs "I have an idea about how we can persuade women to be his betrothed."

Grand Adviser "What is it?"

Minister of Civil Affairs "Reward system."

_The other officials wondered about what he said._

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Kida _(talking on the phone)_ "Of course. Tell mom I'm going to win this competition no matter what. Don't worry about my loan. I can pay it if I win."

_Saika "What if you lose?"_

Kida "There's no way I will lose. I have to win, Saika. Okay. Bye." _She placed the phone on her desk and went to the refrigerator._

Kida "Oh no, it's not working! What should I do?"

_She panicked while removing all the items inside. She sniffed the shrimp bag._

Kida "The shrimp! What should I do?! Since when does the refrigerator turned out like this?"

_She dialed on the phone._

Kida "Hello? Is this the Maintenance department? Please come at room 2215. My fridge is not working."

On the phone: "Sorry, but our workers are all on duty. Could you wait for at least two hours?"

_Frustrated, she hung up and stared at the shrimp bag._

* * *

_Rui's intercom buzzed. He pressed the button and was surprised to see Kida outside._

Rui "Kida?"

Kida "Hi, sorry to disturb you, but can you do me a little favor?"

_Rui looked at the grocery bags she's holding._

Rui "Sure. What is it?"

Kida "My fridge is not working. I called the maintenance but there's no one available at the moment. I'm worried that my food will get spoiled if I'll wait any longer, so can I store these on your fridge?"

Rui "Sure. Come inside."

_Rui brought her to the fridge and helped her store the items._

Kida "Thank you so much, Rui."

Rui "I'm glad that I helped you."

_Kida gently smiled at him._

Rui "Let's go to the restaurant together tomorrow, then."

Kida "Yeah. Thanks!"

* * *

_When Kida left his room, Rui opened the fridge and seriously stared at the bag of shrimps._


	4. Chapter 4

_The final round of the competition has begun. Kida and Rui positioned themselves to their respective stations._

Manager "Good morning to the two of you! The day you have been waiting for is finally here. For this round, you will cook your own choice of pasta dish. The ingredients will also be provided by yourselves. So, are you guys ready?"

Kida "Yes, Sir."

Rui "Yes."

Manager "You only have 30 minutes to prepare and finish everything. Thus, the timer starts now!" _He rang the bell._

_Kida cooked the linguine pasta in Dutch oven. After that, she prepared the blender and put clam chowder, milk, Parmesan cheese and the garlic and pressed the medium speed button. Then, she heated the nonstick skillet and poured some olive oil over medium-high heat until hot. She added the shrimp, mushrooms and onions; and stirred frequently._

_Rui cooked the fettuccini pasta in the salted boiling water. Meanwhile, he melted the butter in a large deep frying pan over medium-high heat. Then, he added some onions and garlic and he stirred continuously. After that, he added the tomatoes, poured white wine and lastly, the clams. He proceeded in shaking the pan._

_Kida stirred in pepper flakes and soup mixture; and stirred in parsley. She added a bit of salt and pepper to taste. After a while, she poured the cooked linguine over the pan and tossed it until the pasta was well-coated._

_Rui added the cooked pasta and parsley to the pan; and he gently tossed them to combine. He seasoned the pasta with salt and pepper. After some tossing, he finally removed the pan from heat._

_For plating, Kida topped her pasta with shredded Parmesan cheese and placed some fresh parsley on top._

_On the other hand, Rui finished his pasta by placing the clams in a presentable way._

Manager "Chefs, time's up!" _He rang the bell again._

_Rui glanced at Kida anxiously._

**Flashback**

_Rui opened his fridge and looked at Kida's items inside. He took out the milk gallon and opened the cover. Then, he took the salt from the shelf._

Rui "Kida, I'm sorry, but I have to win."

_He poured all the salt over the milk and closed the bottle and shook it. He then put back the milk bottle inside the fridge. He closed the door as he took a deep breath._

**End of the flashback**

_Kida looked at Rui and gently smiled at him. He smiled weakly at her._

Manager "Chefs, this time, the one who will judge your final dish is the executive chef of The Botanical Garden restaurant. He studied culinary arts in Italy and has won various cooking competitions in Japan and also in Italy. I am proud to introduce to you, our top chef, Chef Meguru Kamui!"

_Kida was dumbfounded when she heard Meguru's name._

_Meguru entered the kitchen together with the other chefs. He was startled to see Kida again after more than three years. He smiled and began to speak._

Meguru "Good day. I am Meguru Kamui, the executive chef of this restaurant. I will be the judge of this round. I'm glad to see the two of you. I hope that you enjoyed this competition. Therefore, please present me your pasta dishes."

_Rui was the first to present his pasta dish._

Rui "Nice to meet you, Chef. This is my dish, Vongole Fettuccini with White Wine Sauce."

_Meguru waited for about 1 minute before he tasted the Vongole._

Meguru "This is good. The white wine blends well with the clams. The flavors go well with each other."

Rui "Thank you."

Meguru "Rui Nakamura, why do you want to become a chef?"

_Rui looked at him seriously._

Rui "I simply love cooking. I can freely express my emotions when I cook. I become happy when I cook for my family and friends. However, the happiest thing is when those people love and appreciate what I cook for them."

_Meguru gently smiled at him._

Meguru "I see myself in you when I was still starting my career as a chef."

_His eyes shifted to Kida, while the latter was looking down._

Meguru "Miss Kida, what did you cook for us?"

Kida "My dish is called Creamy Seafood Pasta." _She looked at him straight in the eyes this time._

_Meguru tasted her pasta dish but gave no reaction._

Meguru "Kida Akina, why do you want to become a chef?"

Kida "I want to see for myself how great it is to become a chef. That's my reason."

_Her answer caught Rui's attention._

Kida "I was left by my lover when he prioritized culinary arts over me. So I studied cooking really hard, too, until I come up to where I am now."

_Meguru was taken aback the whole time. _

Meguru "T-Thank you for sharing it with us."

_Rui looked at her while she maintained her serious reaction. _

* * *

_After the deliberation, the manager has spoken up the results._

Manager "This round is worth 50 points. To sum it up, the competition has a total of 100 points. After two rounds, Kida Akina takes the lead with the total of 40 points, while Rui Nakamura has a total of 37 points. For the final round, the winner with the total of 50 points is..."

_Rui and Kida listened carefully._

Manager "The winner is... Rui Nakamura!"

_Rui was shocked._

Manager "Which means, the winner of this competition that has a total of 87 points is Mr. Rui Nakamura! You are the newest chef and will be the Sous Chef of The Botanical Garden restaurant! Congratulations!"

_The chefs and other staff applauded._

Rui "Thank you so much!"

_Meguru gave him a gold trophy and a framed certificate. Rui looked at Kida, while the latter was still deep in thought._

Manager "Of course Miss Kida Akina won't go home with nothing today, since she will also receive the silver trophy and a cash prize for accumulating of 80 points. Congratulations, Miss Kida; and thank you for sharing your cooking skills with us!"

_Kida smiled weakly as she took her awards. Meguru was also looking at her sadly._

* * *

_Kida approached Rui while others were busy congratulating him._

Rui "Kida..."

Kida "Congratulations." _She offered a handshake._

Rui "(I'm sorry.) Thank you, you did a good job, too."

Kida "Yeah, thanks. I guess I have to go now. Bye." _She hurriedly left the kitchen._

Rui "Kida, wait..."

_Meguru was about to approach her, but she already went out. He instead went to Rui._

Meguru "Congratulations, Prince Rui."

Rui "Shhh, you can call me by my name."

Meguru "Is that so? Well, welcome to the kitchen, Rui. I felt uneasy that you're under me."

Rui "Don't be, Meguru. Just treat me like you treat others. You're a prince, too, so there's nothing to be worried about."

Meguru "Thanks. I 'm glad that I have you now in my kitchen."

Rui "No problem."

* * *

_As she went outside the kitchen, Kida was approached by Kakeru and others._

Kakeru "Kida, it's been a while."

Kida "Kakeru... Everyone."

Shiki "We heard that Rui won. Is that true?"

Kida "Yeah, he did."

Haruhito "So have you already seen Meguru?"

Kida "You two knew about it, right?"

Satoru "Yeah."

Kida "Why didn't you tell me?"

Haruhito "We're just worried that it might affect your performance in the competition."

Kida "Thanks, but I'm fine now."

Shiki "So, did you two talk already?"

_Kida shook her head._

Kida "I'm sorry, but I have to go now. It's great to see you guys again." _She bowed and left._

Kakeru "Kida..."

Shiki "Is she really okay?"

Haruhito "I'm not sure why she's like that. Is it because she lost, or she saw Meguru again?"

Satoru "I think it's the former."

Shiki "I think it's the latter."

Kakeru "I think it's both."

* * *

Kida _(on the phone)_ " I lost, Mom."

_Mother "So what are you going to do now? How will you be able to pay your loan, huh?"_

Kida "I don't know."

_Mother "What do you mean you don't know?! You have to do something about it!"_

Kida" I can just borrow some money from you and I'll pay you instead."

_Mother "What? It can't be! I told you not to join but what did you do? Have you ever listened to me, huh?"_

Kida "Ah, it's so annoying! I'm hanging up!"

_And the phone call ended._

Kida "I hate this! I really hate this!" _She messed her hair._

* * *

**~The Botanical Garden~**

_Kakeru and the others were in the restaurant._

Kakeru "Can you please call on the executive chef?"

Waiter "Yes, Sir."

_After a while, Meguru went out._

Kakeru "Meguru."

Meguru "Brother... What are you all doing here?"

Kakeru "We would like to invite you to drink later. Are you available?"

Meguru "Yeah, sure, after my work I guess."

Kakeru "That's great. The usual place, okay?"

Meguru "Okay."

Haruhito "We saw Kida earlier."

Meguru "Where is she now?" _His voice weakened._

Satoru" No idea. She hurriedly left the restaurant."

Meguru "Got it. See you later, then."

Haruhito "Bye, Meggy!"

_The four demons looked at each other._

* * *

_Meguru went back to the kitchen and took the order slip._

Meguru "Table number 12: Truffle Tagliatelle, one. Vongole, one. Alfredo, two."

_He observed the chefs in action._

Meguru "Hurry, hurry!" _He closed his fist in disappointment._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

Grand Adviser "You... You won, Your Highness?"

Rui "Yeah."

Grand Adviser "Y-Your Majesty, what shall we do?"

Rui "I thought we had a deal about it, Adviser Yamada?"

Angel King "What are you going to do, Rui? Are you really staying in human realm?"

Rui "I have to, Your Majesty. I will be working there."

Angel King "What about the Angel Realm, huh?!"

Rui "Father, you're still here so don't worry about it for now."

Angel King "You irresponsible thing! How could you do this to us?"

Rui "What did I do? Let me go just this once, Father."

Angel King "Ah, whatever! Just leave! My head hurts when I'm looking at you."

_Rui bowed and left the king's chamber._

Grand Adviser "Your Majesty..."

* * *

Minister of Justice "Have you heard the news?"

Minister of Civil Affairs "What news?"

Minister of Justice "Prince Rui has won the cooking competition in the human realm!"

Minister of Treasury "Which means we're doomed!"

Minister of Culture and Arts "I hoped that he'd lost, though."

Minister of Civil Affairs "The rumor has already reached the Demon Realm and I don't like the feedback there. We should execute our plan as soon as possible."

Minister of Internal Affairs "Even if it's only a show?"

Minister of Civil Affairs "Yeah, as long as we could end that ridiculous rumor."

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

_Kida was sitting alone while drinking some beer._

Kida "Auntie, please bring me more beer and meat!"

Lady "Coming right up! (Geez, she's such a heavy drinker. I wonder if she'll be able to go home by herself?)"

_Kakeru and his group arrived at the same eating place as Kida._

Haruhito "Wow, I miss this kind of bonding moment."

Satoru "Yeah. We're all busy lately that we haven't had a chance to drink."

Shiki "Isn't it Kida? Over there?"

Satoru "Where?"

_Shiki pointed her out._

Kakeru "You're right. It's her. Sheesh, she's drinking too much."

Haruhito "Meguru will see her this time."

Kakeru "Wait, I'll go to her. I'll be back."

_Kakeru went to Kida's table._

Kakeru "Kida..."

Kida "Oh, hi Kakeru!"

Kakeru "That's enough. You're drunk already."

Kida "No I'm not. Heehee."

Kakeru "You are. Your face is already red."

Kida "You're such a kill joy, Kakeru. Here, let's drink some more."

Kakeru "Sheesh. Perhaps, you're like this because you lost?"

Kida "A little bit, but that's really not the case." _She poured more beer on her glass._

Kakeru "What is it then?"

_Kida didn't answer._

Kakeru "Is it because you saw Meguru again?"

_She looked at him seriously._

Kakeru "Is it?"

Kida "Yeah! I admit it! Now what?" _Her eyes turned red._

Kakeru "Why? Are you upset when you saw him?"

Kida "Because memories from the past have been overflowing on my mind again!"

_Kakeru let out a big sigh as he took the bottle away from her hand._

Kida "I didn't expect to see him again."

Kakeru "Oh, by the way, why did you join the cooking competition? Do you want to become a chef, too?"

Kida "I only wanted to know how great it is to be a chef. But, the truth is... I really wanted to be with him again. Silly, right?"

_Kakeru remained quiet._

Kida "I want to be like him. I want to learn how to cook so that he can also relate to me. If I become a chef, I thought he will come back to me. He would appreciate what I can cook, and he would also give me some advice if there's something wrong. I have those thoughts, Kakeru."

Kakeru "Uh huh."

Kida "We can cook together, share together about what we like to eat and what we don't like to eat."

_She drank more beer._

Kakeru "That's enough."

Kida "But, do you know what hurts me the most? It's seeing him very happy and successful even without me by his side. I just can't accept that."

_Kakeru continued to look at her sadly._

Kida "I worked very hard to become a chef, but that's not for myself. What I did was for him. It was all for him."

Kakeru "Kida..."

_Kida fell asleep all of a sudden._

Kakeru "Kida? Are you asleep? Hey."

_Rui saw Kakeru and Kida as he walked his way home. He went to the table._

Rui "Kakeru?"

Kakeru "Oh, Rui. It's you. Congratulations, by the way."

Rui "Yeah, thank you. What happened to her?"

Kakeru "She got drunk knowing she's allergic to alcoholic drinks."

Rui "I'll take her home."

Kakeru "Are you sure?"

Rui "Yeah. We live in the same condominium, so it's okay."

Kakeru "I'll leave her to you, then. Thanks."

_Rui carried her on his back and left the place._

Meguru "Hi, everyone! Oh, where's Brother?"

Shiki "He is talking with Kida over there-" _ He stopped talking when he saw Rui carrying Kida._

Haruhito "Oh, isn't that Prince Rui?"

_Kakeru returned to their table._

Kakeru "Meguru, you're here."

_He looked at Meguru as the latter was staring at Rui and Kida._

* * *

**~Golden Palace~**

_As the elevator opened, Rui went straight to Kida's door._

Rui "Kida, may I know your password?"

_Kida was not responding._

Rui "Hey, Kida. What's your password?"

_Rui pressed the 1 button four times as a guess. He was surprised as it sounded and the door opened._

Rui "Sheesh, how could she use this kind of password?"

_He gently placed her on her bed and looked at her face._

Rui "You must have been very upset to me. I'm sorry." _And he left quietly._

* * *

_The next morning..._

_Rui opened the door._

Kida "Good morning!"

Rui "G-Good morning."

Kida "Here, I brought you something for breakfast."

Rui "Really?"

Kida "I found out that you brought me in my room last night. I'm sorry for causing you trouble. I didn't misbehave last night, right?"

Rui "Yeah, you're fine. Come in."

_Kida placed the platter on his table._

Kida "This is Beef Stroganoff. I hope you'll like it."

Rui "This looks delicious! Thanks!"

Kida "Um, I will go back to Demon Realm now."

_Rui was shocked to hear it._

Rui "Why?"

Kida "There's nothing left to do here, Rui."

Rui "How about your cooking? Aren't you going to pursue your cooking?"

Kida "Maybe some other time, but not now." _She smiled._

Rui "I see..."

Kida "I hope we will see each other again, soon. Thanks for everything, tomato. See you around."

Rui "This is so sudden..."

_Kida smiled at him for the last time and left._

Rui "Bye..." _He stared at the pasta dish sadly._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_Rui went back to the palace._

Angel King "What are you going to do, Rui? That rumor has already been to Demon Realm."

Rui "I don't care, Father."

Angel King "You don't care? You don't care that they thought of you as..."

Rui "Then what am I supposed to do? This is getting annoying already."

Butler "Your Majesty, the Grand Adviser wants an audience."

Angel King "Let him in."

_The Grand Adviser went inside the room._

Grand Adviser "Your Majesty, Your Highness..."

Angel King "Yes?"

Grand Adviser "Good news! We already found the woman who'll play as Your Highness' betrothed!"

Rui "What?"

Angel King "Did you bring her with you?"

Grand Adviser "Yes, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Let her in."

Rui "What does this mean, Father?"

_As the butler opened the door, Rui was in great shock when he saw this woman._

Kida "Your Majesty. Your Highness." _ She lifted up her head and looked at Rui._


	5. Chapter 5

_Rui was dumbfounded when he saw Kida in front of him._

Angel King "So you're the woman?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty. My name is Kida Akina."

Angel King "I see. This is my son, Prince Rui of Angel Realm. So, you already know what you'll do, right?"

Kida "Um..."

Rui "Your Majesty, what is this all about?"

Angel King "She will be your betrothed for the time being, or until the rumor disappears."

Rui "Eh?"

Angel King "What's with that reaction? You should be thankful that even a demon like her is willing to help you out!"

Rui "But we already made a deal, right? What happened to it?"

Angel King "This is only an act. I won't force you to be with her all the time. As long as you're together when you're going out of the palace, then the rumor will eventually subside."

_Rui was looking at her._

Angel King "Rui, tour her around."

Rui "All right... Come with me."

Kida "Yes, Your Highness."

Angel King "Be good to her, alright?"

Rui "Yes." _He answered in a low voice._

_The two went out of the chamber._

Angel King "Hm? He agreed so easily."

Grand Adviser "I noticed that, too. I was already expecting him to let me tour her instead."

* * *

Rui "I'm sorry about this. I supposed you're only being dragged to do this."

Kida "It's fine. I needed money so-" _She suddenly cupped her mouth with her hands._

Rui "Money...?"

Kida "I mean... They said there's a reward if I do this role. Sorry about that."

Rui "Oh... (These people... they really have nothing to do!) It's okay."

Kida "Um, is your name, Rui?"

_Rui was quite startled._

Rui "Yes, I am Rui Mikami. Why did you ask?"

Kida "Nothing. It's just that I know someone that has the same name as yours. Oh, he's an angel, too! Perhaps, do you know him, too?"

_Rui gulped._

Rui "Is that so? My name is quite common, huh? Haha! I'm not so sure about it. By the way, how did you manage to come here?"

Kida "Actually..."

**Flashback**

**~Demon Realm, Treasury Building~**

_Kida took out some paper bills in her pocket and sighed._

Kida "This is too little for my loan payment."

_She handed the money to the cashier._

Demon 1 "Have you heard of the rumor in Angel Realm?"

Demon 2 "What rumor?"

Demon 1 "Their prince... He's rejecting all the women as his betrothed, so they said that he prefers men over women."

Demon 2 "Seriously?! But I heard the Angel Prince is very handsome."

Demon 1 "Is that so? Our prince is handsome, too. It's a waste if the rumor is true."

Demon 2 "You're right."

Demon 1 "My angel friend said that she was offered to be the Angel Prince's betrothed too, but she declined even there's a monetary reward for it."

Demon 2 "Monetary reward? Really? Are they that desperate?"

Demon 1 "I know, right? In that case, the rumor is true after all."

Kida "Could you tell me about that offer?"

_The demons were surprised when Kida suddenly butted in._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

Angel Staff "Are you sure about this? Are you willing to be the Angel Prince's betrothed?"

Kida "Y-Yes."

Angel Staff "One moment." _The staff called someone on the phone._

_After a while, the Minister of Civil Affairs went out to see Kida._

Minister "Are you the woman?"

Kida "Yes, Sir."

Minister "But you're a demon."

Kida "Demons are not allowed, Sir?"

Minister "Hmm. It's true that even the monetary reward is out, the angels still refused to accept the offer. I guess, I'll have to accept you if you're that determined."

Kida "Really?"

Minister "Yes."

Kida "Then, what do I need to do? Um, this is only an act, right?"

Minister "Yes, you only have to act as our prince's betrothed when you're outside the palace together or if there are special gatherings here or in Demon Realm that requires the prince's presence. You will have to show everyone that the rumor is definitely not true."

Kida "I get it. Sir, the rumor... It's not true, is it?"

Minister "Of course not! Our prince is a real man! I can testify to that! You see, the rumor only started because he's not interested in marriage yet. Thus, he rejected those angel women completely. Miss...?"

Kida "I'm Kida. Kida Akina."

Minister "Miss Kida, why are you interested in this offer? Is it because of the reward?"

Kida "Yes, Sir. I badly need money for my loan."

Minister "(This woman sure is bold.) I-I see. I will go to your treasury department right away. Your loan will now be considered as paid. Hence, all you have to do is to be with our prince's side. Is everything clear?"

Kida "Yes, Sir. Um, do I need to live in the palace?"

Minister "Yes, until the rumor subsides. You are also allowed to go back to Demon Realm. You can consult it to our prince himself. Then, please come to the Angel Palace tomorrow morning. You know where it is, right?"

Kida "Yes, I guess."

Minister "All right! You don't need to bring your stuff. The palace will provide it all for you. For your other things, you can bring them with you if you want. Thank you for saving our kingdom! Let's see each other tomorrow, then." _He tightly held her hands together._

Kida "Yes, Sir."

**End of the flashback**

Rui "I see. (Sheesh. Those ministers!) The room you went in earlier is the king's chamber. When you pass through this long hallway, you will end up in the royal hall. This room next to the king's chamber is the queen's. But this is empty for so long now."

Kida "Pardon me for asking, Your Highness, but where is the queen?"

Rui "She died when I was still in my childhood."

Kida "I'm sorry, I didn't know!"

_Rui smiled warmly._

Rui "It's fine. You're going to find it out anyway. This one is my room."

Kida "O-Okay..."

Rui "The last room over there is one of the guest rooms here in the palace."

Kida "(The Angel Palace sure is pretty. This is my first time to come here. The funny thing is, I came here first than in the Demon Palace.)"

Rui "Here's our royal hall."

Kida "Wow... This is seriously huge!"

_The royal hall is composed of arc windows and has a high ceiling; the walls are full of golden wall decals; the hall is elegantly decorated by golden lights, crystal chandeliers reflected on the porcelain tile flooring; porcelain cherub figurines, porcelain and gold jars and vases, and wooden furniture especially for the king._

Rui "This is where we held meetings and special gatherings."

Kida "Wow."

_She approached the huge portrait of Rui's father hanging on the wall._

Kida "Your Majesty."

Rui "Yeah, this is the spot where the king of Angel Realm's portrait was being hung. You can see all the previous kings' portraits at the royal museum."

Kida "Really? That's awesome."

_She moved on to the next portrait which is the royal family's._

Kida "It's you!" _She giggled._

Rui "What's with that silly grin?"

Kida "Huh? (He's talking to me so casually.) Pardon me, Your Highness."

Rui "(Oops, I should treat her formally. I almost forgot.) I mean, why do you laugh?"

Kida "It's just that, you're cute when you're young."

Rui "Is that so? (I wonder why we meet again?)"

Kida "Is this your mother?" _She's looking at the woman carrying Rui on her lap._

Rui "Yeah."

Kida "She's beautiful. It's good to see a family portrait like this." _She smiled weakly._

Rui "I agree with you."

_She moved on to the framed map._

Kida "What is this map?"

Rui "Oh, that's the old map of ancient seven angel kingdoms. These portions here consist of what Angel Realm is today."

Kida "Really? Then how about this one at the bottom?"

Rui "It's the last lone kingdom that doesn't want to be a part of us. It's called Lunatea. Our negotiations with them are still in process though."

Kida "You mean, they have their own king?"

Rui "Yes. They still don't want to be with us that's why we're doing negotiations. I heard the Demon Realm also has the same situation."

Kida "Yeah." _She became sad._

Rui "I want to tour you to other places but I'm afraid I'm going to human realm now."

Kida "You're going there?"

Rui "Yeah. I have some work left there so..."

Kida "Okay. Um, Your Highness!"

Rui "Yes?"

Kida "Um, where do I stay?"

Rui "You can stay in my room."

Kida "W-What? Your room?"

_Rui nodded happily._

Kida "But..."

Rui "Only when I'm not around."

Kida "I-I see..."

Rui "If you need something, just call our butler. Don't hesitate to ask, okay? See you later, then."

Kida "Yes, Your Highness."

_Rui left the palace hall._

Kida "He's quite familiar. His blue eyes are pretty. Is he really not into men?"

* * *

**~The Botanical Garden~**

Meguru "Good day. After the cooking competition, our winner is going to start working today. He is our new Sous chef so please take care of him. Everyone, this is Chef Rui Nakamura."

_Rui, wearing his other look, entered the kitchen._

Rui "Good morning, everyone. I am Rui Nakamura. I hope that we will cooperate with each other."

_The chefs clapped hands and they introduced themselves to him._

Meguru "Okay. Chef Rui, here is your station. You will be in charge of the main dishes. You can also give instructions if necessary."

Rui "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "After a few minutes, lunch time is here. Everyone, get ready."

All "Yes, Chef."

_Rui went to the freezer to check the food items._

Meguru "Rui, how do you find the kitchen?"

Rui "This is nice. The cooking equipment is complete and stylish as well."

Meguru "Right. If there is anything you need, don't hesitate to tell me."

Rui "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "Oh, it's kind of awkward for me."

_The two laughed together._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_Kida entered Rui's room._

Kida "Wow. It's pretty simple here."

_She stared at the bed, cabinets, and other furniture._

Kida "I'm curious about his clothes and stuff. That way, I could find out if he's really a man or not. Heehee."

_She slowly opened Rui's huge closet._

Kida "Wow. The prince really has many outfits. Royal suits, black and gray suits, long sleeves, T-shirts, pants, slacks... Hm? They are all manly."

_She smelled the shirts._

Kida "Manly scent, too."

_She closed the closet and opened the other one._

Kida "Whoa! Another bunch of suits!"

_She opened the drawers at the bottom._

Kida "What are these?"

_She was startled when she got an underwear._

Kida "Oh no! I didn't see anything! Gosh..." _She blushed._

_She folded back the underwear and placed it neatly._

Kida "Prince Rui sure is neat when it comes to his room, huh? They are all arranged neat and orderly. Are men really like that? I thought they are messy especially in their room. I wonder if Kakeru does the same, too?"

_She opened another drawer._

Kida "Handkerchiefs. Hm? They are all checkered-printed and plain. The dominant colors are black, white, red and gray. Very manly as well. No flowers?"

_She closed the drawer and went to the other cabinet._

Kida "Ooh, this is full of shoes! Awesome! He's like a celebrity."

_She observed the shoes placed orderly._

Kida "They are all men's shoes. Sheesh, I could not find anything."

_She went to the table._

Kida "He has plenty of perfumes, too."

_She smelled the perfumes one by one._

Kida "Man's scents."

_She suddenly sneezed._

Kida "How could he wear such strong perfume?" _She returned the bottle on the table._

_She went near the bookcase. On it, she noticed something._

Kida "A cooking book?"

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

_The chefs were busy cooking in the kitchen._

Meguru "Table number 2; Spaghetti Al Olio, 2; Pasta Primavera, 1, Three-Pepper Pasta, 1.

Table number 10; Vongole, 2; Chicken Bruschetta, 1.

Table number 19; Chicken Alfredo with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream, 2; Savory Chicken Oven Dinner, 1. That's all."

All "Yes, Chef."

_After a while, Rui brought the dish to the chef's table._

Meguru "Okay, good." _And he pressed the buzzer._

* * *

**~Demon Palace~**

Kakeru "Your Majesty."

Demon King "Is it you? The one who'll negotiate in Solaire?"

Kakeru "Yes, Your Majesty."

Demon King "Okay. Do a good job. By the way, how's your brother?"

Kakeru "He's doing great in the restaurant. I also visit him often."

Demon King "Tell him he needs to visit his father, too."

Kakeru "I will tell him that, Your Majesty."

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Meguru "Thanks for your hard work."

All "You too, Chef."

_The chefs left the kitchen except the kitchen assistant._

Rui "Are you going to do all the preparations?"

Assistant "Yes, Chef."

Rui "Let me help you."

Assistant "No, Chef! I can do it by myself, thanks."

Rui "Are you sure?"

Assistant "Yes."

Rui "Okay."

Meguru "Going home, Rui?"

Rui "Yeah. I'm quite tired. You sure have lots of customers, huh?"

_Meguru grinned._

Meguru "Where are you staying?"

Rui "At the condo. (Oh, right! Kida...) I still have to return to my 'old home'."

Meguru "Old... home?"

_Rui hinted that there's a human listening._

Meguru "Ah! I get it. Okay, see you tomorrow, then."

Rui "Sure. Bye, Chef!"

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

Kida "Why does he have a cooking book? Is he into cooking, too?"

_She returned the book._

Kida "Now, where's the restroom here?"

_She went out of Rui's room._

? "Why are you inside the prince's room?"

_Kida was surprised as she held the doorknob and slowly turned back._

Kida "Y-Your... Majesty...?"


	6. Chapter 6

_Kida was seen by the king going out of Rui's room._

Kida "Your Majesty..." _She was anxious._

Angel King "What are you doing inside the prince's room?"

Kida "I-I was just staying for a while, Your Majesty."

Angel King "With whose permission?"

Rui "From me."

_The king turned back and saw Rui coming._

Kida "Your Highness..."

Angel King "What? Did you allow her to stay in your room?"

Rui "Yes, Your Majesty. Only if I am not around."

Angel King "I see. I'll leave it to you then."

_The Angel King left together with his butler. Kida felt relieved when the king left._

Rui "Did he scold you?"

Kida "If you didn't arrive, I guess."

Rui "Don't worry, I'm here." _He smiled assured._

Kida "Thank you, Your Highness."

Rui "You can call me by my name when we're alone."

Kida "What? How could I..."

Rui "It's okay, and that's an order from me."

Kida "Huh? If you say so. (He's a kind person.)"

Rui "(I'm going to make up for what I did to her. It's my fault in the first place why she's here.) Let's get inside, first." _He smiled gently towards her._

Kida "Okay..."

* * *

Rui "How did you find my room?"

Kida "Huh?! (Did he know? That I looked around in his belongings?)"

Rui "It's boring for you, right? Well, this is what a man's room looks like. You didn't expect the prince's room to be this simple, did you?"

Kida "Not really. As a matter of fact, I prefer simple but tidy rooms."

Rui "Thanks, we're alike, then. But..."

Kida "But...?"

_She was surprised as Rui suddenly went near her._

Rui "I smell my perfume on you."

Kida "Oops! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!"

Rui "Heehee, you're so cute."

Kida "Excuse me?"

Rui "You panicked all of a sudden. It's alright, I only mentioned it."

Kida "Ah, hehehe... (Are you playing with me right now?) But I saw a cook book in your bookcase. Do you like to cook, by any chance?"

Rui "(Damn it, she saw it... I guess I have to be careful next time.) That cook book belonged to my mother. She loves to cook and she's good in it, too."

Kida "Really? That's great. How about you?"

Rui "I can cook, too, but not as much as she could do."

Kida "Is that so? I'm sure you cook well. Um, am I allowed to cook in the royal kitchen?"

Rui "Seriously? Don't push yourself hard. We have plenty of cooks here in the palace. They can prepare anything you'd like to eat."

Kida "You may not know, but I can cook, too."

Rui "Really? (Yes, I know, and I know that you cook so well.) Are you sure about that?"

Kida "Of course. There's nothing much for me to do here, so I would be happy if I can cook for you and for His Majesty."

Rui "If you insist, then you can do it."

Kida "Really? Thanks, Your Highness- I mean, Rui. I have one request, though."

Rui "A request?"

Kida "Please don't forget to inform His Majesty about this, or else he'd be surprised again if he sees me working in the kitchen."

Rui "Haha! Yes, yes, I will. Sorry about what happened earlier."

_She grinned happily._

Kida "(This is strange, but it feels like I've known him already.) Um, how's your work today?"

Rui "Now that you mentioned it, I really feel tired." He buried his whole body on his huge bed.

Kida "Oops." _She stood up from sitting on the bed._

Rui "No, it's okay for you to sit here. You're my betrothed, after all."

Kida "Y-Yeah... Haha. (This is confusing me. He really treats me as a woman.)"

_She kept on staring at him._

Kida "(His body is manly, too. His long legs, his slender arms, his long fingers... I bet his body is gorgeous, too. Snap!) What am I thinking?!"

Rui "Huh? What are you thinking?"

Kida "What?! Sorry... It's nothing. I... I have to go now." _She hurriedly stood up._

Rui "Where are you going?"

Kida "To the guest room, over there!"

Rui "There's a problem."

Kida "What?"

Rui "I forgot to ask the chambermaids to clean it."

Kida "(What's with this man? Is he really that forgetful?) So, what should I do?"

Rui "You can stay here for now. Tomorrow, the guest room will be opened for you."

Kida "Is that okay? What if His Majesty knows?"

Rui "Don't worry about him. You can sleep here, and I'll sleep on the sofa."

Kida "But this is your bed... And you're a prince."

Rui "Nah, you're a princess now, so it's okay."

Kida "O-Okay... (As if I have a choice.)"

* * *

_The next morning..._

Kida "Where am I?! Oh, right. I am here in the Angel Palace."

_She looked around the room but Rui wasn't there._

Kida "Where did he go?"

_She found a note on the end table._

Kida "'Kida, I already went to work. See you later! Rui' I wonder what his work is."

* * *

_As she went outside, she hurriedly but quietly walked away from Rui's room._

Kida "Wew... I'm glad the king didn't see me."

Grand Adviser "Your Highness."

Kida "Huh? Who...?"

Grand Adviser "Your Highness, I am Takuto Yamada, the king's retainer. Nice to meet you."

Kida "Yeah, I'm Kida Akina. Likewise. But, why are you addressing me as 'Your Highness'?"

Grand Adviser "Because you are now the future wife of Prince Rui so it's only natural to call you that."

Kida "W-What? Future wife?"

Grand Adviser "I mean, for the sake of stopping the rumors, Your Highness."

Kida "I see. Ahaha! (This old man, seriously!)"

Grand Adviser "Your breakfast is ready, Your Highness."

Kida "Thank you."

* * *

Minister of Treasury "I heard the betrothed of His Highness is already living here."

Grand Adviser "Yes, she is. I met her this morning and she seems a kind and charming demon."

Minister of Internal Affairs "I heard Prince Rui is treating her well. Is that true?"

Grand Adviser "Yes."

Minister of Civil Affairs "Seriously? What happened to him?"

Minister of Justice "Maybe he's like that since it's only an act."

Minister of Internal Affairs "You have a point there. I bet that lady won't stay here long, though."

Minister of Culture and Arts "How sure are you?"

Minister of Internal Affairs "Just because. I bet she will only stay here for a month!"

Minister of Treasury "One month? That's too long! She will only stay for 1 week. Eventually, Prince Rui will get rid of her."

Minister of Justice "1 week is still long! I think 3 days is the best assumption. Three days!"

Minister of Internal Affairs "Here's for my bet." _He placed a silver coin on the table._

_Then, the two ministers placed one silver coin each as well._

Grand Adviser "Tsk tsk tsk."

* * *

**~Kingdom of Solaire~**

_The kingdom of Solaire is the independent and the last demon kingdom among the seven ancient kingdoms that is not yet part of Demon Realm. The kingdom is inspired by the sun._

Soldier "Introduce yourselves."

_Kakeru's retainer showed the crest of demon royal family._

Soldier "Tell Her Highness that the prince of Demon Realm is requesting an audience."

Eunuch "Yes."

_Kakeru arrived in Solaire to continue the negotiation between them._

* * *

Eunuch "Your Highness, Prince Kakeru Kamui of Demon Realm is requesting an audience."

? "Let him in."

_The door opened and Kakeru and his retainer entered the chamber of Solaire's princess._

Kakeru "Your Highness."

Princess "It's an honor to meet the crown prince of Demon Realm. I'm the princess of Solaire, Princess Sayuri. Well, have a seat."

_Kakeru and his retainer sat down._

Kakeru "I know you already have an idea of my visit today."

Sayuri "Yes, and our kingdom gives you the same answer. No."

Kakeru "Your Highness, Solaire won't lose its glory when you'll join the Demon Realm. In fact, you will gain more. You will have more allies, the kingdom will be more prosperous and we can help each other out. The Demon King will even grant your king a position in the royal house."

Sayuri "They all sounds good but it won't last in the future. The Solaire will vanish. Position in the royal house? Why does my father need that position when he has the highest one here?"

Kakeru "I am aware of the economic status of this kingdom, Your Highness."

Sayuri "And do you think we need your help? We are in the process of solving that matter. I apologize, but Solaire will never be a part of Demon Realm. That's a word from my father."

_Kakeru sighed._

_The princess placed two jars of buttermilk cookies on the table._

Sayuri "This is for you and for your brother, Your Highness. Solaire is famous for these cookies even during ancient times."

Kakeru "Thank you. But, do you know my brother?"

_Sayuri didn't answer, but she smiled hinting an affirmation._

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Haruhito "It's been a while, Meggy."

Shiki "Thanks for the meal. It was really the best."

Meguru "Thank you guys for coming. You made me feel relieved."

Satoru "Kakeru is taking too long. I hope he succeeds this time."

Meguru "Did he go to Solaire again?"

Haruhito "Yeah."

Shiki "Oh, there he is."

Satoru "Kakeru!"

_Kakeru approached them._

Meguru "Brother, how' it?"

Kakeru "Negative."

Shiki "They're very stubborn, aren't they? They were already being offered some aid but they still refuse."

Haruhito "What is it, Kakeru? Cookies?"

Kakeru "Yeah, the princess gave this. Oh, right. Meguru, do you know the princess of Solaire personally?"

Meguru "Huh? No. Why?"

Kakeru "She told me to give the other one to you. How about a woman named Sayuri?"

_Meguru went quiet._

Kakeru "So you did know her. How? When?"

Meguru "When I was in Italy three years ago. Is she the princess of Solaire?"

Kakeru "Yes, she is. I heard Solaire has found their long lost princess, and apparently, that is her."

Meguru "Really?! I didn't know even a single thing, Brother."

Satoru "Then what is your relationship with her?"

Meguru "Huh? She's a friend."

Shiki "Really?"

Meguru "Of course."

Haruhito "I feel something strange, though."

Meguru "I'm telling the truth!"

Satoru "By the way, here's the note I wrote from the meeting earlier. Moreover, there's another meeting for both realms tomorrow."

Kakeru "Thanks, Satoru. Oh, what should I do? I can't attend the meeting tomorrow, too."

Satoru "Kakeru, only the royals are allowed to attend."

Kakeru "Okay, Meguru, attend the meeting."

Meguru "I can't! We have plenty of VIPs tomorrow."

Kakeru "But this is important. Just leave your work from one of your people temporarily."

Meguru "O-Okay..."

Kakeru "Great! Thanks a lot, Meguru!"

* * *

_While Rui was busy slicing the vegetables, he accidentally wounded his finger. He closed his eyes as if he envisions something._

Rui "A woman wearing a white dress? Inside the prison?"

_He lately noticed his wound on his finger. He turned on the faucet and washed away the blood._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_Evening came._

Maid "Your Highness, your laundry is all dry now. I'll fold them for you."

Kida "Thanks. Oh, wait!"

_She took the white dress inside the laundry basket._

Kida "This is my favorite dress, so I'll do it myself."

Maid "Yes, Your Highness."

_The maid entered her room._

Butler "Your Highness, His Majesty wants a word from you."

Kida "W-What? His Majesty?"

Butler "Yes."

Kida "Okay, I'll just have to put this back first."

Butler "This is urgent, Your Highness. Just bring it with you."

Kida "Okay..."

* * *

Butler "Her Highness."

Angel King "Come in."

_Kida went inside the chamber. She was quite surprised when she saw Rui already inside._

Kida "Your Majesty."

_She went beside Rui. He was shocked when he saw the white dress that is similar to the one in his vision._

Angel King "I called the two of you to prepare for tomorrow's meeting. You have to join me to represent the Angel Realm."

Rui "With Kida?"

Angel King "Yes. This is now our chance to clear that rumor. Tomorrow, introduce her as your betrothed to everybody."

Kida "(Huh?!)"

Rui "Yes, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Kida, please help out Rui."

Kida "Y-Yes, Your Majesty. I'll do my best!" _She smiled at him._

Rui "(Why does she have that dress? Does it mean...?)"

* * *

_Kida placed the dress on her bed and went out of the room. After she went away, Rui sneaked in her room._

Rui "I knew it. It is that dress. Is she the woman I saw? It can't be! I have to save her." _He took the dress with him._

* * *

_After a while, Kida came back but was dazed when her dress suddenly disappeared._

Kida "Where's my dress? I just put it here a while ago."

_She looked in her cabinets and even peeked under her bed but it was not there. She decided to go to Rui's room._

* * *

_When she opened the door, she was surprised when she found her dress._

Kida "Why is this here? Perhaps, did he take this? But why?"

_She paused for a while, thinking of something._

Kida "I knew it. He really is interested in dresses. That means, is he really gay?"

_Suddenly, Rui's door opened._

Rui "Kida?"

Kida "Sorry to barge in. I only came in to get this dress. Why is it here? Did you take it?"

Rui "(I shouldn't let her know about that vision I saw. I have to get that dress back.)"

Kida "Perhaps, do you like dresses?"

Rui "What?"

Kida "I mean, the fact that you took it without me knowing means you're secretly interested in it, right?"

Rui "What are you saying?"

Kida "Sorry to disappoint you, but I can't give this away. This is my favorite and my mother had given this to me. If you want, you can have some of my dresses. Oh, but we don't have the same measurements. I'll just tell you the shop where I'm buying those dresses. Don't worry, I'll keep your secret for sure. Heehee. This dress is very pretty, right?"

Rui "(Are you implying that I'm not a real man? Fine, I'll show you then.)"

_Rui slowly approached her._

Kida "Rui...?"

_Without a word, he continued to approach her while she was stepping backwards._

Kida "Prince Rui, what are you...?"

_She ended up leaning against the wall. He drew his face closer to hers._

Rui "So you're saying that I'm not a man and I like dresses?"

Kida "Could you please step back a little bit? You're so close!"

Rui "What if I kiss you? Will it prove otherwise?"

Kida "W-What?! Kiss?!"

Rui "I'm serious." _He drew his face as if he's about to kiss._

_Kida closed her eyes and squeaked with her mouth shut. All of a sudden, he clipped her lips with a clam he took from his pocket._

Kida "Mmmm!"

Rui "Hahaha!"

_She removed the clam from her lips._

Kida "That hurts! You're mean!"

Rui "Heehee. That's your reward for accusing me as gay."

_Kida frowned with all her might._

Rui "You can have the clam." _He laughed as he gently pat her head._

* * *

_Kida hurriedly went back to her room, flustered. The thought of Rui drew his face closer to her came in her mind._

Kida "No! What am I thinking?!"

_She stared at the clam on her hand._

Kida "Eeeeeeee!"

* * *

_The day of the meeting arrived. High officials and royal families from both realms came and talked to each other._

Rui "Come with me."

Kida "Huh?"

Rui "Your face is red, why?"

Kida "(Is it? Well, this is your fault!) None of your business!"

Rui "Heehee."

* * *

Minister "Prince Meguru?"

Meguru "I'm here to take my brother's place since he can't attend today."

Minister "Yeah, it's good to see you here."

Demon "Look, the Angel Prince brings his fiancee with him."

Minister "Where?"

_Meguru and the minister looked towards Rui and Kida._

* * *

Rui "Yes, she's Kida Akina, my fiancee." _He tightly held her hand while talking to everyone._

_Meguru was in shock when he saw them._


	7. Chapter 7

**~Demon Realm~**

_Rui introduced Kida as his fiancee among the officials._

Kida "It's my honor to meet you. My name is Kida Akina."

Demon Official "However, you're a demon, right? How could you be the Angel Prince's betrothed?"

_Kida glanced at Rui as if she's waiting for his answer._

Rui "Well, that's the way it is. I can see no problem in it, right?"

_The officials nodded in agreement._

_From afar, Meguru was taken aback as he saw the two together._

Meguru "Is... Is that true?"

Demon "Yes. I think the Angel Prince is a real man, after all."

Meguru "(No... way.)"

* * *

Angel Eunuch "Good day to each and everyone. Thank you for attending this important meeting which concerns the future of both realms and of the two lone kingdoms. For our realm, Prince Rui Mikami and his fiancee, Miss Kida Akina are our representatives. For Demon Realm, we have Prince Meguru Kamui, the younger brother of the Demon Crown Prince, as the representative."

_Kida was shocked to see Meguru again. He was looking at her, too. The officials applauded despite of Meguru and Kida's reactions._

Angel Eunuch "Today's agenda is about the recruitment and providing assistance of the lone kingdoms: Solaire of demons and Lunatea of angels. To start, Prince Meguru will give his words regarding the kingdom of Solaire."

_Meguru went to the center and began to speak._

Meguru "Yesterday, the Demon Prince has failed again to convince the king of Solaire to join forces with us. Their decision is as solid as a rock that is too difficult to destroy. The Demon Realm is concerned about the economic and financial status of the kingdom due to absolute negligence of the royal family to their community. Other demons from Solaire were already fleeing their homes and starting their new life in Demon Realm as they see a ray of hope in our realm. We're afraid that this is the beginning of Solaire's downfall."

_After his speech, Rui was next to step up._

Rui "The Angel Realm shares the same sentiments as the Demon Realm. The kingdom of Lunatea will be a waste if we'll let it perish as the time goes by. This is because of the kingdom's incompetent, immature, and irresponsible king, that is about the same age as me. He only concerns himself in drinking alcohol and flirting with women. He cannot see his people suffering. He cannot see his beautiful kingdom. If we persuade them like before, we will end up with the same result. Hence, I suggest that we have to use a different approach this time."

Demon Official "What kind of approach is it?"

Rui "An indirect approach."

Meguru "Indirect approach?"

Rui "That's right. We should not persuade them face to face this time. With this kind of approach, we have to influence their mind and feelings until they realize our goal and it will reach into their hearts, and that is, for the betterment and preservation of their kingdom."

_The officials were whispering here and there._

Rui "What do you think?"

Meguru "I think it will work this time. Let's try it. It may be difficult and slow to achieve, but we will definitely bring home the bacon."

Demon Official "We think the same way, too. That is a great idea."

_Rui smiled in contentment._

* * *

_While others were busy discussing to each other, Meguru has finally given the chance to speak with Kida._

Meguru "It's been a while."

_She stared at him as if she doesn't know what to say._

Meguru "How are you?"

Kida "What right do you have to ask me that?" _She looked away._

Meguru "Are you still mad at me?"

Kida "What do you think?"

Meguru "I'm sorry... Sorry for all those years that I left you alone."

_She kept quiet._

Meguru "Do you know why you lost in the competition?"

_His question caught her attention._

Meguru "I admit, your pasta dish is not as good as your rival. Why? For some reason, it's too salty."

Kida "Too... salty?"

Meguru "Yes. However, that's not the reason why I didn't choose you."

Kida "What is it then?"

Meguru "It's because of your reason to be a chef."

Kida "Why? Because it hurts to know the truth?"

Meguru "You have to separate your personal feelings with work. You have to deal with it professionally. A person wants to be a chef because of his strong passion and love for cooking."

Kida "If you're just here to tell me that, you can now leave."

Meguru "Kida..."

Kida "What?"

Meguru "Um, I just want to know how you're doing these days. Are you really Prince Rui's fiancee?"

Kida "Yes. Why?"

Meguru "But you're a demon. How is it possible?"

Kida "It already happened so it's possible."

Meguru "(I don't believe it.)"

Kida "How about you? How it is to be a top chef?"

Meguru "I'm happy that my dream has finally come true."

Kida "Of course you are. You even left me and ignored me during those years. You must be that happy."

Meguru "Kida, that's not it-"

Kida "Don't worry, I don't want to remember the past anymore. I am living happily for myself now."

_Meguru went sad._

Meguru "T-That's good for you, then." _ His words trembled._

Kida "Of course, all those painful memories were coming back to me, but I'm trying my best not to be affected by them so that I can live."

_He continued to listen._

Kida "At first, if I have to see you again, I want to ask you many questions. I want to know why you left me, if you're happy without me, if you regret leaving me, if you're thinking about me as well... But now, now that I see you again, I won't ask those questions anymore. It's not that I'm afraid knowing the answers, but because I find them thoughtless now."

Meguru "I deeply apologize for what I've done to you. I understand if you cannot accept my apology so soon, but I will wait until such time will come."

_She didn't respond._

Meguru "Kida, can I be honest with you?"

Kida "What do you mean...?"

Meguru "I know that if I say this, I will be shameless but, I really want to start over again... with you."

_She was surprised as her hands were shaking. She was about to open her mouth but..._

Rui "Kida."

_She turned back._

Rui "You're here. I looked for you everywhere, you know?"

Kida "Sorry."

Rui "Prince Meguru, you're here, too."

Meguru "Y-Yeah..."

_Rui noticed something about her._

Rui "Why are you pale? Are you not feeling well?"

Kida "What?"

Rui "You're pale. Are you okay?"

Meguru "Are you okay?"

_Rui was quite shocked when Meguru asked about her worriedly._

Kida "No, I'm fine, Your Highness."

Rui "Whatever it is, you should rest now. Prince Meguru, I'm sorry but we have to go back to the palace."

Meguru "Sure, Prince Rui. Thank you for coming today."

Rui "Yes. See you."

_They left Meguru hanging._

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Satoru "Meguru, is the meeting finished already?"

Meguru "Yeah, it finished early as expected."

Shiki "Why does your voice like that? Do you have a cold?"

Meguru "What voice?"

Haruhito "Yeah, your color is off, too. Aren't you feeling well?"

_Meguru drank a glass of water._

Meguru "I saw Kida today."

_The demons were surprised as they heard about it._

Satoru "Where?"

Meguru "In today's meeting."

Haruhito "Huh? Why? Is she an official?"

Meguru "She's Prince Rui's fiancee. That's what I witnessed earlier. He even introduced her to other officials."

Shiki "What? Fiancee?"

Satoru "Is that true? How did it happen?"

Meguru "Who knows? But, I don't believe it. They're just doing it because of that rumor."

Haruhito "Let's say it's true, but why her?"

_Meguru drank some water again, refusing to speak._

Shiki "Based on your actions, you have finally talked to her."

Satoru "So, how did it go? What does she say? Did she curse you?"

Haruhito "Hey, Satoru."

Satoru "Oops."

Meguru "Actually it's better if she did it."

Shiki "What?"

Meguru "It will make me happy if she did curse me, because it means she still loves me. However, it seems she's already starting to move on." _He sighed heavily._

_The demons looked at him sadly._

Meguru "I'm selfish, right?"

Haruhito "Meguru, do you still love her?"

_Meguru thought for a while._

Meguru "Sorry, guys, but I have to prepare for lunch now. Talk to you later." _He smiled weakly and went inside the kitchen._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

Kida "I'm okay, Rui."

Rui "If you say so. I'm glad that it went off now. By the way..."

Kida "Huh?"

Rui "Do you personally know Meguru?"

Kida N-No. Why?"

Rui "I-I see. (I feel something's off, though.) I know!"

Kida "What is it?"

Rui "Do you want me to cook you dinner?"

Kida "Really?"

Rui "Yes. Tell me, what do you want?"

Kida "Hmmm, I want to cook with you."

Rui "What?"

Kida "Let's prepare dinner together! How's it?"

Rui "Sounds great. Shall we?"

_She grinned happily._

Rui "Okay, I'll head off to the kitchen first."

Kida "Sure!"

_Rui left her room._

_Alone, Kida remembered what Meguru had said to her._

Kida "'Really want... to start over again...?'"

_Unknowingly to her, a tear slowly fell from her eye._

* * *

**~Kitchen~**

Kida "Do you hear my sad monologue?These words that blame you The name that becomes pain when I call it you.. you~~"

Rui "Woooo..."

Kida "Holy cow!"_ She was startled when Rui suddenly came in._

Rui "What's with that broken hearted song?"

Kida "You surprised me! Don't just barge in suddenly like that!"

Rui "Why not? You sing well but I don't like that kind of song. It should be cheerful."

Kida "Really? Did I sing well? No way. My voice is like, ugh."

Rui "Yeah, you sing very well- Hey, what happened to your eyes?"

Kida "Why?"

Rui "Did you cry?"

Kida "(H-How did he know?! Sheesh, he's sharp!) No, it's the onion's fault."

_Rui suddenly grabbed her hand and smelled it._

Kida "H-Hey... What are you doing?"

Rui "I don't smell onion. Why did you cry?"

Kida "It's nothing. Don't worry."

_He held her shoulders while facing her._

Rui "Kida, the thing I hated most is when I see a woman crying. It breaks my heart."

Kida "Rui... (Why is he saying these kind of things? He makes my heart flutter! No way...)"

_He smiled warmly._

Rui "Shall we start? What are you going to prepare?"

Kida "It's Bolognese Lasagna with Porcini-Ricotta Filling."

Rui "Wow, sounds nice!"

Kida "How about you?"

Rui "Sausage Ravioli Filling. Finally, I can now taste your dish. I'm looking forward to it, Kida." _He smiled gently._

Kida "You should! (Such a warm and gentle smile. He's like an innocent child that is carefree and simple little things such as this can make him happy.)"

* * *

_Kida was cooking the meat sauce in a 4-quart Dutch oven with sausage, ground beef, onion, carrot, sweet pepper, celery, pancetta, and garlic over medium-high heat. Then, she stirred in tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, dried basil, oregano, salt, and black pepper. While boiling, she opened the lasagna package and poured them in._

_Meanwhile, Rui was cooking sausage over medium-high heat. He stirred in spinach. Then in a medium bowl, he combined egg yolk, ricotta cheese, sage, and nutmeg._

Rui "Kida, your lasagna."

Kida "Huh?"

Rui "You can now remove the lasagna."

Kida "Just wait a little bit."

Rui "No, remove them already to avoid overcooking. Like this. Hold the tongs."

_Rui positioned himself behind her and held her hand holding the tongs. He removed the lasagna noodles with tongs and placed them in cold water._

Rui "You should place them in cold water to avoid being sticky and overcooked if you bake them later."

Kida "(Oh no, he's so close! H-He's holding my hand, too. My heart beats faster. Wait, what if he feels it? No! It's too embarrassing!)"

Rui "Understand?"

Kida "Huh?"

Rui "Sheesh. Are you even listening to me?"

Kida "Sorry!"

Rui "Heehee."

* * *

_Rui and Kida presented their dish to the king and his eunuch._

Angel King "Well done, you two. I didn't even expect Kida to be a good cook. It's nice to see two of you relate to each other."

Kida "It's my pleasure to present my dish to you, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Well then, shall we eat, Adviser Yamada?"

Grand Adviser "Yes, Your Majesty."

_The maids served the king and the eunuch pasta dishes._

Angel King "Join us, too."

Rui "Yes, Your Highness."

_While Rui and Kida served themselves, the king tasted Rui's ravioli._

Angel King "As usual, my son cooks very well. This ravioli is excellent! Isn't it, Adviser?"

Grand Adviser "Certainly, Your Majesty."

_Rui smiled. _

_Next, the king tasted Kida's dish this time. She watched the king's reaction attentively._

Angel King "Mmm, this lasagna is delicious! I love when the cheese and the flavor of sauce melt in your mouth. Brilliant."

Kida "Thank you, Your Majesty!" _She smiled happily at Rui._

_After the meal, Kida presented something to them._

Angel King "What is that?"

Kida "Buttermilk cookies, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Buttermilk cookies? Did you bake these?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

Rui "When? I didn't see you baking them earlier."

Kida "I baked them yesterday, that's why."

_The Angel King took one and tasted it._

Angel King "Delicious! This tastes like Angel Cake!"

Kida "I'm glad you like it, Your Majesty. The cookies are my mother's specialty. She just taught me how to do them."

Rui "Your mother?"

Kida "Yeah. It's famous in our hometown."

Rui "In Demon Realm?"

_Kida smiled at him._

* * *

Kida "Why is he like that to me earlier?! He's very sweet. He's holding my hands like... Oh no, what should I do? No, it can't be. I can't like a gay! Because of that dress incident, I'm more certain that he's like that, but why am I feeling like this? Kida, you are crazy! There are plenty of real men out there but why him?! You're crazy! Crazy!" _She messed her hair while walking back and forth. She was thinking of something._

_The thought:_

_Kida "Rui, I..."_

_Rui turned back dramatically and looked at her sadly._

_Rui "I'm sorry, but I cannot accept your feelings, Kida. You may see me as a man, but my heart is like yours, too."_

_Kida "What..."_

Kida "I knew it. I knew that's going to happen to me! Nooooooo!"

* * *

The next day...

**~Human Realm~**

Meguru "Guys, double time! VIP orders are coming like crazy."

All "Yes, Chef!"

Meguru "Expect that tomorrow's scene will still be like this so prepare yourselves."

All "Yes, Chef!"

_Rui was plating his dish properly before presenting it to Meguru._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

Angel King "I sent for the two of you for our approach in Lunatea. Rui, I want you to go and settle things there."

Rui "Me? When should I go?"

Angel King "Tomorrow."

Rui "Your Majesty, I cannot go to Lunatea today. Something big will happen during my work tomorrow so I'm afraid I cannot do my mission well."

Angel King "What?! Then do you want me to go there instead?"

_Rui went quiet._

Angel King "That won't do. You suggested that kind of approach so you do it."

Rui "But, Father!"

Kida "I'll do it, Your Majesty."

_The Angel King and Rui were shocked as they looked at her._

Angel King "What?"

Kida "Let me do it, Your Majesty. Please allow me to go to Lunatea."_ She looked at him, determined._


	8. Chapter 8

Rui "Kida..."

Kida "Please give me permission to go there, Your Majesty."

_The Angel King thought deeply._

Rui "Are you sure about this?"

Kida "Yes, Your Highness. (Because I want to help you.)"

_Rui and Kida waited for the king's response._

Angel King "Can you capture the king's heart?"

Kida "I'll do my best to make it happen. No, I will definitely make it happen, Your Majesty."

Angel King "All right. I will allow you to do so."

Kida "Thank you very much, Your Majesty!"

_Rui smiled at her weakly._

Angel King "Kida, the prince and I will have something to talk about. Can you leave us for a while?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty." _She bowed her head and left the room._

Rui "Father, are you sure about this? Will you let her go to a foreign land?"

Angel King "If you're that worried, then why don't you go there instead?"

Rui "Father, I..."

Angel King "Truthfully, I don't understand you at all. You're putting so much time and effort in the human realm; but in your own kingdom, you're taking these issues lightly."

Rui "I'm sorry, Father."

Angel King "And you let a demon solve our problems. I'm disappointed in you."

Rui "Father, I thought you already understood me. Being a chef really makes me happy. This is what I want to do."

Angel King "Rui, I hope time will come that you'll realize the worth of this realm. I'm sure something will wake you up. Until then, just do what you want."

_Rui kept quiet._

* * *

_He knocked on Kida's door._

Kida "Who is it?"

Rui "It's me. Can I come in?"

Kida "Sure."

_He opened the door and came inside._

Rui "Kida, are you sure you will go?"

Kida "Yes. You said you have important things to do in your work, so I'm going to help you out."

Rui "Why?"

Kida "Come again?"

Rui "Why do you want to help me?"

_Kida looked at him straight in the eyes._

Kida "(Because... I like you, Rui. I want to impress myself to you. I'm not sure if you're really a man, but I still like you. Let me like you now, and I'm going to deal the consequences later.) I know how hard it is to be a royal so I'm trying to help you out."

Rui "Is it really okay?"

Kida "Of course. I will do my best to bring you the kingdom of Lunatea." _She gave him a bright smile._

Rui "Okay then. I will support your mission. Lunatea's future is in your hands now, so please do well. I'll send some royal guards to accompany you there."

Kida "Thank you for trusting me, Rui."

* * *

Angel King "Adviser Yamada, do you think I made the right decision?"

Grand Adviser "I can feel Her Highness' sincerity and determination to do the task, so I think you're right, Your Majesty. Her will to help Angel Realm especially to His Highness is strongly present. Actually, I admire her. She's too good to be a demon."

Angel King "Is it? Hahaha. You're right. She was the only woman who stayed longer with Rui, and she's a demon for that matter."

Grand Adviser "Yes, Your Majesty."

Angel King "I hope she can somehow influence him to be that responsible. By the way, summon the ministers. They need to know about Kida's departure in Lunatea."

Grand Adviser "Yes, Your Majesty."

* * *

_Kida was busy packing up her things for her journey._

Kida "Kingdom of Lunatea, is it a beautiful place, too?"

_She took out her favorite beautiful white dress._

Kida "Of course you'll go with me. Heehee."

_Rui knocked on the door and came inside again._

Kida "What is it?"

Rui "Are you really sure, Kida?"

Kida "What, are you worried I may not be able to make it?"

Rui "(I cannot tell you to go to the restaurant and be in my place instead. I bet you'll hate me if you know the truth.) That's not it..."

Kida "Sheesh, just trust me, okay? Oh, right. Can I meet my mother, Rui? I, at least have to tell her about my journey."

Rui "Right! How about your mom? Will she let you go?"

Kida "Don't worry, she will. Even if she refuses, I'll still go."

Rui "Okay, you may go. Such a hard-headed demon." _He gently smiled at her._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

Mother "Now at least you remembered me. Where are you staying right now?"

Kida "The truth is..."

Mother "What? Did you do stupid things again?"

Kida "I'm staying in the Angel Palace these days."

Mother "What?! Angel Palace?! What are you doing there?"

Kida "I'm playing the Angel Prince's betrothed, Mom."

_Her mother suddenly hit her forehead._

Kida "Ow! That hurts!"

Mother "What are you talking about?! Why a betrothed?"

Kida "Mom, it's just a show! You knew about the rumor, right? It's because of that rumor."

Mother "I can't believe this, seriously!"

Kida "He's harmless, Mom. We're in separate rooms, too."

Mother "Sheesh. I don't know what I'll do to you. So, what are you doing here?"

Kida "Mom, I'm going to Lunatea."

Mother "Why? What is it this time?"

Kida "I need to help the prince to claim the kingdom and help the angelkind. I heard they're in a bad state because of their irresponsible king."

Mother "And so? What does it have to do with you?"

Kida "Mom! Don't be like that. I'm just letting you know."

Mother "You're playing your role as his fiancee very well?"

Kida "Quite right."

Mother "Why?! Are you falling for him already? Don't tell me..."

Kida "N-No, you're wrong!"

Mother "Sheesh, how defensive. You're in love with him already. I thought, he's... you know. And you're fine with that?"

Kida "I'm not confident about it, but he treats me as a woman. I think he's really not like that. (I'm trying very hard to make myself believe in that!)"

Mother "Kida, listen to me carefully. How about, let's go back now to Solaire?"

_Kida lost her composure all of a sudden._

Mother "Don't you think it's now time to go back?"

Kida "I'm not going back, Mom."

Mother "You said you'll help the Angel Realm and that angel kingdom, so why not help your kingdom first?"

Kida "Sorry but I'm not going back to Solaire anymore. I will never go back there. Let's just live happily here, Mom." _She looked away._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

_Rui got a text message from Meguru saying to report at work early. He then opened his gallery and clicked on Kida's pictures._

Rui "Sheesh, she's very focused not knowing I took some photos of her."

_He was browsing Kida's photos taken in the kitchen._

* * *

_The next morning, Kida met with Rui, the king and the ministers before her departure._

Angel King "Are you all set?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Take this."

_The king handed her a bottle of blue perfume._

Kida "What is this, Your Majesty?"

Angel King "This perfume is made with oils from Angel plants. This will get rid of your aura as demon. Your wings will become angel's, too. When you're there, you have to wear this. The effect will last for about 12 hours. The only enemy you have is water."

Kida "Water?"

Angel King "Yes. Stay away from water as much as possible if you're with someone. Understood?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

_The king set his eyes on his eunuch._

Angel King "Let him enter."

Grand Adviser. "Enter."

_The door opened and a man wearing a silk robe entered the palace hall._

Angel "Your Majesty."

Rui "Who is he, Your Majesty?"

Angel King "He is the retainer of the king of Lunatea. He's here to help you, Kida."

Angel "Thank you for trusting me, Your Majesty."

Angel King "I entrust you this woman, so please protect her at all cost."

Angel "Yes, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Kida, I wish you safety and victory in your journey."

Kida "Thank you and I will do my best, Your Majesty." _She glanced at Rui, as the latter was sadly staring at her._

_After that, Kida and the royal guards stepped out of the hall._

Minister of Civil Affairs "Are you sure about her, Your Majesty?"

Angel King "Yes. Her plan is brilliant, too."

* * *

_As she stepped out of the palace, Rui called her._

Rui "Take good care of yourself, okay?"

Kida "Yes, Your Highness."

Rui "If you need help, just call me. No, call me right away."

Kida "Yes, Your Highness." _She giggled._

_The two looked at each other's eyes._

Rui "(I hope for your triumphant return. I will wait for you.)"

Kida "(Your Highness, I'm doing this for you, because... I like you.)"

* * *

**~Kingdom of Lunatea~**

_Lunatea is the only angel kingdom that is not yet part of Angel Realm. As they say, it is the counterpart of demon kingdom Solaire. The kingdom is inspired by the moon._

Retainer "Miss, we're now here at the entrance of Lunatea's palace."

Kida "A nice place, but why is it that there are only few angels I've seen along the way?"

Retainer "That is our problem, Miss. Our people has already fled from here due to the negligence of our king."

Kida "I see. It's kind of cold here, too. By the way, my name is Rina."

Retainer "I will prepare you your coats, Miss Rina. Shall we get inside first?"

* * *

Kida "Tell me about the king."

Retainer "He was about the same age as you. At such a young age, the throne and the responsibilities were passed on to him. Don't freak out if you happen to see a lot of women in his chamber, Miss Rina."

Kida "Uh, okay. What made him like that?"

Retainer "Because of the throne, his family was destroyed. He was betrayed by his half-brothers since he was the favored one. Thus, the late king sent them into exile, while his mother had died because of that fight."

Kida "Terrible..."

Retainer "If you meet him, please refrain from mentioning about it, Miss Rina."

Kida "I understand. Can you tell me what is his favorite food?"

Retainer "Huh? Favorite food?"

Kida "Yes, his favorite food, particularly his mother prepares for him, if there's any."

* * *

**~Restaurant~**

_The kitchen is as busy as usual. Meguru went to patrolling._

Meguru "Use the foil when rolling that meat loaf. Do it again."

Chef 1 "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "Why are you using unfrozen meatball mixture? Get some frozen ones and do your meatballs again."

Chef 2 "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "What is this?" _He pointed at the parsley on top of the dish._

Chef 3 "It's a parsley, Chef."

Meguru "I know that's a parsley. Do you call this a parsley?"

_He picked the parsley using his two fingers._

Meguru "Do we have limited supply of parsley? Why did you choose this near-to-wilt one? Use some fresh ones, hurry!"

Chef 3 "Sorry, Chef." _The chef tensely went inside the freezer._

Meguru "Get your thoughts straight!" _He yelled._

All "Yes, Chef!"

_Rui glanced at Meguru._

Rui "(Sheesh, he's tensed.)"

* * *

_Outside the kitchen, the restaurant was full-packed of VIP guests and everyone was so busy._

Waiter "Rolled Italian Meat Loaf." _He placed the plate on the table._

Sayuri "Thanks. Um, can you call on your executive chef?"

Waiter "Um, I'm afraid to tell you but the kitchen is very busy, Miss."

Sayuri "It's just for a short time, please." _She smiled cheerfully to the waiter._

Waiter "Ah, yes..."

* * *

Waiter "Chef."

_Meguru turned back._

Waiter "A customer wants to see you."

Meguru "Tell the customer I'm busy."

Waiter "Chef! She... insisted."

_With his pissed face, Meguru angrily damped the towel on his table and went out._

* * *

_He was surprised to see Sayuri._

Sayuri "This dish is excellent, I love it, Chef."

Meguru "What are you doing here?"

Sayuri "What do you mean? I'm dining, of course!"

Meguru "I'm busy right now. I'm going."

Sayuri "I'm here to see you, too."

Meguru "Look, I'm really busy."

Sayuri "Hm? A chef should not say those things to your customer, you know."

_He became upset._

Meguru "Please enjoy your meal, customer." _And left._

Sayuri "I'll wait for you until you're finished! He's still cute. Heehee."

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

Retainer "You can now enter."

_Kida and her fellow cooks entered the king's chamber. She was shocked to see women inside the king's chamber, flirting with him._

Kida "(His retainer is right. I really didn't thought that he's not exaggerating.)"

_She placed the platter on the table. Before leaving, she looked at the king. He has long, silver-colored layered hair, wherein his bangs are slightly covering his right, purple eyes. His nose and lips are carved perfectly. Wearing his elegant, silk robe, he appears quite skinny; and he has slender arms and long legs. His fingers are long and thin, which the ring he is wearing appears to be quite big. The king was laughing with women in his arms._

Kida "(He looks happy, but he cannot hide his sorrow in his beautiful eyes.)"_ She and the cooks left his room._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

Rui "I'm so tired!"

_He laid his body comfortably on his bed. He checked his phone but there's no message from Kida._

Rui "Huh? She's not texting me. I wonder if she's okay?"

_He went inside her empty room and looked around. All of a sudden, the thought of his vision came into his mind. He was startled and he sweat._

Rui "The dress... the dress..."

_He desperately searched for the white dress he saw in his vision. He searched in the closet and cabinets but he didn't find it._

Rui "No, it can't be..."

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

_Kinichi ate the gyoza Kida made. After he took a bite, he was surprised._

Kinichi "Who is the cook who prepared this?"

Retainer "That's..."

Kinichi "Bring her here."

Retainer "Yes, Your Majesty."

_After a while, Kida took a breath and entered the king's chamber once again._

Kida "Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Are you... Are you the one who cooked these?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "How did they taste like this?"

Kida "It's just my method of cooking gyoza, Your Majesty."

_Kinichi went quiet and only stared at the said dish. Wondering about his silence, Kida took a glance at him. Suddenly, she saw his tears slowly coming down from his eyes._

Kida "Your Majesty..."

_She approached him and took out a handkerchief and put under his chin._

Kida "Your tears... They may fall on your food."

_The king looked at her with his sorrowful eyes._


	9. Chapter 9

_Kinichi slowly took the handkerchief from Kida's hand._

Kinichi "You may go now."

Kida "Y-Yes, Your Majesty." _She left the king's chamber._

Kida "(He really misses his mom.)"

* * *

_She took her phone and wrote a message for Rui._

Kida "Rui, I'm now here in Lunatea as one of the cooks. How are you? Me? I'm doing fine here. I already find a way to reach the king's heart. Slowly but surely, I will be able to convince him join the realm." _And she pressed 'send'._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

_Rui read the message right away._

Rui "Good job." _He smiled as he said._

_He then called Kida._

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

Kida "Huh?" _She eventually pressed the end button to cancel Rui's call._

* * *

_Rui tried to call her again but she ended it, too._

Rui "What? Are you trying to ignore me now because you have met that king?" _He called again, but she ended it again._

* * *

Kida "Sheesh! Why is he calling all of a sudden?!"

_She wrote a message saying 'Your Highness, please do not call. It's better to be discreet for now.'_

* * *

Rui "What? Discreet? So are you completely ignoring me now? Because of that king? Hmph!"

_He threw his phone on his bed. After a while, he reached out for it and stared at the screen._

Rui "Hmph!"

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

Retainer "The breakfast is ready, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Come in."

_Kida and her companions entered the room with the meal. They bowed before going out but Kinichi stopped them, especially Kida._

Kinichi "Wait. You."

_The three ladies looked at each other._

Kinichi "The red-haired lady."

Kida "M-Me?"

Kinichi "Yes, you. Stay here for a while."

Kida "Y-Yes."

_The other two went out._

Kinichi "Your name?"

Kida "Huh? Rina, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Rina?" _He smiled shortly._

Kida "(What's with him?)"

Kinichi "Have a seat."

Kida "Yes?"

Kinichi "It's okay. Have a seat."

_Kida did what she was told._

Kinichi "Which one did you prepare?"

Kida "The beef yakiniku, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "I see. This one is my favorite."

_He tasted the beef and smiled after._

Kinichi "Delicious."

Kida "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Where are you from?"

Kida "Huh? From Aurora City, Your Majesty."

_Aurora City is the southern part of Lunatea._

Kinichi "You cook great. Are you a full-pledged chef?"

Kida "Not yet."

Kinichi "Well, it's a waste if you don't become one, Rina."

_Kida smiled shyly._

Kinichi "You must be surprised why I shed some tears yesterday."

_She looked down without answering._

Kinichi "I remembered my mom when I ate the gyoza you made. They tasted like her cooking."

Kida "(Sorry Your Majesty, but I really followed your mother's gyoza recipe.) I-Is that so? It's an honor for me, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "From now on, prepare me lots of delicious dishes. That's an order."

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

_The king warmly smiled at her._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

Minister of Culture and Arts "How is Her Highness? Any news?"

Grand Adviser "His Highness told me her plan is working, so there's a huge possibility that she will succeed."

Minister of Civil Affairs "That's great, then. She's doing her job well."

Minister of Justice "I didn't expect her to stay beyond three days with the prince."

Minister of Treasury "It's over a week already and yet she's still here."

Minister of Internal Affairs "Hahaha! I guess I am the winner, then. Give me your silver coins, now!"

Minister of Treasury "No way! What if she leaves the palace on the 29th day? It won't count as one month!"

Minister of Justice "Indeed! Let's wait for the 30th day then. Minister Honda, the battle is not yet over."

Grand Adviser "Tsk tsk tsk."

* * *

**~Restaurant~**

_Meguru, Rui and the rest of the chefs were busy as usual. Meguru took the order slips dashing on the counter._

Meguru "Table number 5, Chicken Fettuccine, 2; Vongole, 2; Foie Gras, 1. Table number 13, Moretti Mussels, 2; Tagliatelle Bolognese, 1; Chicken Marsala, 2; Caprese, 1."

All "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "Guys, double time."

All "Yes, Chef!"

_As he glanced at the corner, he was startled to see Kida present._

Meguru "Kida...?"

Kida "You can do it, Meguru. Go! Heehee."

Meguru "Is it really you...?"

_Kida went near him, smiling._

Kida "You can do it! I'm just here to cheer you on!" _She was smiling brightly at him._

_Meguru smiled as well, but it suddenly vanished when he realized that no one was standing at the corner. Then, a thought suddenly came in his mind._

**Flashback**

_Meguru "Are you really Prince Rui's fiancee?"_

_Kida "Yes."_

_Meguru "Is it possible?"_

_Kida "It already happened so it's possible."_

**End of the flashback**

_He closed his fist in anger._

Chef 1 "Chef."

_Meguru was not coming back to his senses._

Chef 1 "Chef, are you okay?"

Meguru "Huh? What?"

Chef 1 "Here's the Tagliatelle Bolognese, Chef."

_Meguru stared at the dish shortly._

Meguru "Do it again."

Chef 1 "What?"

Meguru "Do it again."

Chef 1 "Yes, Chef... (But this is alright for me.)" _He weakly went back to his station._

_A waiter came in the kitchen._

Waiter "How many minutes left for the Tagliatelle?"

Meguru "How many minutes, Satoshi?"

Chef 1 "10 minutes, Chef."

Meguru "Act fast!"

Chef 1 "(Sheesh, what the hell is wrong with him?)"

_Meguru tried hard to hide his anger._

* * *

_A waitress turned over the open closed sign into 'prep time'._

Rui "Kakeru! Everyone."

Kakeru "Rui! How are you working here?"

Rui "We're always busy, but I'm having fun."

Kakeru "That's good to hear. So, how's Meguru as superior?"

Rui "He's doing a great job, Kakeru. He really is an excellent chef."

Shiki "I'm happy for Meguru."

Haruhito "Me, too. That's our Meggy!"

Kakeru "By the way, I heard Kida is your fiancee. Is that true?"

Rui "To be honest, we're just showing that to everybody to stop that stupid rumor going around. You all know me, right? Although I'm not paying attention to it first, but Father and his followers were disturbed so..."

Kakeru "I see. Yeah, we understand the situation, too. So, how is she now?"

Rui "Actually, she's in a mission in Lunatea."

Satoru "Lunatea? The lone kingdom in your realm?"

Rui "Yeah. She insisted to go there in my place to solve the problem. I'm very thankful to her, really."

Haruhito "Wow, that's awesome!"

Rui "But, how did you know her? Are you close?"

Kakeru "Yes, we know her long time ago already. We're great friends."

Rui "I see." _He smiled._

* * *

Rui "Chef, your friends are here."

Meguru "Are they? Okay, I'll go now, then." _He left the kitchen._

Chef 1 "I hate Chef."

Chef 2 "Me, too. He always yells at me."

_Their conversation has caught Rui's attention._

Chef 3 "At first I thought he's kind, but I guess looks always is deceiving."

Chef 1 "Did you see him earlier? His mind was definitely somewhere else, and yet he told me to redo my dish!"

Chef 2 "I know, right? He was often yelling 'set your thoughts straight' or whatever, but he himself can't do it."

Chef 3 "Shhh, it's Sous Chef."

_They looked at Rui worriedly._

Rui "Why are you that upset to Chef?"

Chef 1 "He always wants me to redo my dishes, Chef."

Chef 2 "Right! He always yells at us, too!"

Rui "But he's just doing his job as our chef, wasn't it?"

Chef 3 "Still, we started to hate him. He was also favoring other chefs."

Rui "Really? I didn't see it that way, though."

Chef 1 "I think you're better than him, Chef."

Chef 2 "He's right! It's better if you'll lead the kitchen."

_Rui just smiled awkwardly._

* * *

Meguru "Brother!"

Kakeru "Meguru. How's work?"

Meguru "A bit tired, but I still have to finish my shift."

Haruhito "You know what, we talked with Rui a while ago."

Meguru "Really?"

Haruhito "About Kida, he admitted their engagement is a fraud."

Meguru "A... fraud?"

Satoru "Yeah, Kida agreed to help him just to erase the rumor about him. That's what he said."

Meguru "Really?!" _His cheerful face appeared._

Kakeru "Yeah. Don't tell me, you're planning on getting back to her?"

Meguru "Should I?"

Shiki "Are you sure? Then you shouldn't have broken up with her from the start."

Meguru "I know, right? I know it's my fault."

Haruhito "Should we help you then, Meggy?"

_Meguru grinned._

? "Meguru!"

_The demons were surprised to see Sayuri, the Solaire Princess._

Kakeru "Your Highness?"

Satoru "Your... Highness?"

Sayuri "Prince Kakeru, it's been a while! I'm here to visit Meguru."

_The demons looked at each other._

Meguru "The restaurant is not yet open."

Sayuri "Hey, stop treating me as a random customer."

Meguru "Brother, I'll go back to kitchen, now. Sorry, guys."

Sayuri "Hey, you don't have to treat me like this! I came all the way here from Solaire and all you can give me is your back?"

Meguru "I really don't have time to chit-chat." _He hurriedly went inside the kitchen._

Sayuri "Meguru! Meguru!"

_Suddenly, a young man wearing glasses went to Kakeru's table._

? "Sayuri, let's go home now."

Sayuri "No! I won't go home without talking to Meguru!"

_The man held her arm tightly and dragged her._

Sayuri "Brother! Hey!"

Kakeru "Brother?"

Kouyuu "Ah, forgive me for introducing myself late. I'm Kouyuu, the crown prince of Solaire. You must be the prince of Demon Realm. Sorry for the ruckus my sister caused."

Sayuri "Hey! What do you mean ruckus?! Let me go, Brother!"

Kakeru "Nice to meet you, Prince Kouyuu."

_The prince bowed and smiled apologetically as he dragged the princess along with him._

Shiki "What a troublesome princess. Is she the one who gave you buttermilk cookies?"

Kakeru "Yes, she is. I didn't know she has a brother."

Satoru "So she really knows Meguru. What kind of relationship do they have for her to act that way?"

Kakeru "That's for Meguru to explain." _He seriously stared at the kitchen door._

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

_The king was enjoying himself with women and alcohol as usual while waiting for dinner._

Woman 1 "Your Majesty, I want to tour around the palace again with you. Only the two of us."

Woman 2 "What do you mean only the two of you? Of course he'll going to choose me instead!"

Woman 1 "What?!"

Retainer "Your Majesty, dinner is ready."

_The king was startled as he pushed the women away from him._

Kinichi "Enter."

Woman 1 "Your Majesty, how could you do that?"

Kinichi "Sorry."

_Kida and her companions entered the chamber and placed the platters on the table._

Woman 2 "Your Majesty~~"

Kinichi "Stay away!"

_Kida was quite shocked when the king pushed the woman away again. She was not looking at him, thus not knowing that the king was happily looking at her while she was serving the food._

* * *

**~Demon House~**

_Meguru was closing his eyes while laying down on his bed. Then, he slowly opened his eyes and sighed heavily. He got up from the bed and went to his drawer. He opened it, and took a book. While he scanned the book, he saw some old photos of him and Kida happily together. One photo showed him wearing a party hat while Kida was kissing his left cheek with a caption saying 'Happy birthday to my one and only.' The other photo was the two of them watching beautiful fireworks display and a caption saying 'She finally accepted my heart! So happy~~' Suddenly, a tear fell on the photo, making the ink smudged._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_Rui kept on checking his phone, but there's no message coming from Kida. He went to her room and looked around._

Rui "How could she not placing a single photo of herself here?"

_He sighed heavily as he sat down on her bed._

Rui "For some reason, this palace feels very empty."

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

Retainer "Miss Rina? Can I have a minute?"

Kida "Yes?"

Retainer "This is for you." _He placed a teardrop cut diamond-like jewel on the table._

Kida "Wow... What is this?"

Retainer "It's called the moon crystal, Miss Rina. It's identical to a diamond, but if you place it under direct sunlight, you will see rainbow colors inside the jewel."

Kida "Wow, it's really pretty. Is this really for me?"

Retainer "Yes, for thanking you of what you did to our King. He really changed a lot since you came here. He's not drinking and inviting women to his room anymore."

Kida "Really?"

Retainer "I care deeply for the king since he was young, so I'm really glad that he was turning back to his old self. Thank you, Miss Rina. I know that you're the Angel King's person, but I hope you'll stay with Kinichi after this."

_Kida smiled without responding._

* * *

_Few days have passed._

Kida "Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Enter."

_Kida entered the room._

Kinichi "Rina, let's go outside."

Kida "Yes?"

Kinichi "Let's stroll outside the palace. The weather is good today."

Kida "But... I still have many things left to do, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Are you the only one cooking? Just leave those to others and come with me. Okay?"

Kida "(Why is he like this all of a sudden?) Y-Yes, Your Majesty."

_Kinichi smiled brightly._

* * *

_Back into her room, Kida changed her clothes to her white dress and arranged herself._

Kida "I guess this is the right time to show him the situation outside the palace."

* * *

Kida "Your Majesty."

_The king turned back and was astonished to see her._

Kinichi "You're beautiful, Rina."

Kida "T-Thanks, Your Majesty."

_Kinichi offered his hand to her. She was hesitant at first, but eventually she took his hand and they walked together with the royal guards._

_As they set off outside the palace, Kinichi led her to accessories shop._

Kinichi "It's a great thing we went outside, isn't it?"

Kida "Yes."

Kinichi "You can choose any accessories you want. I'll buy them all for you."

Kida "Your Majesty!"

Kinichi "No more objections, Rina. Now, choose what you want."

_Kida hesitantly browsed at the accessories displayed on the table. After some thought, she finally got some hair clips that have embedded stones on them._

Kinichi "That's all?"

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Don't be shy. You can still get some."

Kida "But-"

Kinichi "Such a stubborn woman we have here."_ He picked a pair of silver crescent moon earrings and gave them to her._

Kida "Your Majesty, this is too much..."

Kinichi "These are my gifts for you, so I will feel happy if you accept them all. Try these earrings, I bet they'll look good on you."

_Kida was staring at him, amazed._

Kinichi "Here, I'll put them on for you."

Kida "No, it's okay..."

_He put the earrings on her ears in a soft, slow manner._

Kinichi "There. They look good on you." _He gave her a small mirror._

Kida "They are. Thank you, Your Majesty."

_The king smiled sweetly._

Kida "(It's my first time seeing him smile like this.)"

* * *

Woman "Where's His Majesty? He's not in his room again."

Cook "I don't know. I thought you were always with him."

Woman "That was before. But now, he's not paying attention to me anymore!"

Cook "Is that so? You see, I noticed something."

Woman "Noticed what?"

Cook "The new cook here, the king was giving her too much attention."

Woman "What?!"

Cook "Yeah. The king always called for her and requested her to make many dishes, too."

Woman "No! I won't allow it! The king is only mine! Where is that woman?!"

Cook "Who knows? Maybe she's in our room."

_Without hesitation, the woman ran towards the said room._

* * *

_After they ate lunch, Kinichi and Kida left the place._

Kinichi "Their food cannot beat yours, Rina."

Kida "Really? You're exaggerating, Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Exaggerating? I'm just telling the truth."

Kida "Heehee. Your Majesty... Actually, I have something to show you."

Kinichi "What is it?"

_They went outside the palace territory and ended up in the town. Kinichi was stunned when he witnessed the town has almost no people anymore. The small shops were already closed. Nearby houses were all empty, too._

Kinichi "What happened here...?"

Kida "Your Majesty, we are currently in Lune City."

Kinichi "This is the capital city of Lunatea, but what happened? This seems to be a ghost city. This is not the Lune City I've known."

Kida "Your Majesty, your people have already abandoned Lunatea and went to Angel Realm. Other cities were like this, too."

Kinichi "What?"

Kida "Aurora City is like this either."

_He was bewildered of the horrible sight he has seen._

Kinichi "Let's go further."

Kida "Your Majesty..."

* * *

_The woman barged inside the room but there's no one. She looked around, and something caught her attention: a fancy box. She opened it and was surprised to see the item inside: Kida's perfume._

Woman "I-I know this! Whose perfume is this?"

_A cook came inside._

Woman "Hey, who owns this box?!"

Cook "Hm? That's Rina's."

Woman "Rina?"

Cook "Yeah. The new cook."

Woman "What?! (She's... She's a demon?!)"

* * *

_Kinichi and Kida ended up in a huge plantation, but there were no crops planted there. Nearby small houses were vacant, too. The king couldn't react properly._

Kida "Your Majesty, this has already occurred in other cities. There are still angels left, but I'm afraid they're starving right now."

Kinichi "No... What should I do? How do I restore Lunatea? I can't do this alone..."

Kida "Your Majesty, how about agreeing to join the Angel Realm?"

_Kinichi looked at her seriously._

Kida "The Angel King is willing to help you, Your Majesty. I'm sure of it. How about accepting their help now?"

Kinichi "I guess you're right. I don't want it, but if it is to help my people and the kingdom, I'll do it."

Kida "R-Really? You're accepting it?"

Kinichi "Yes, Rina. I will. Thank you, thank you for bringing me here." _He tightly held her hands._

* * *

_When they returned to the palace entrance..._

Woman "Your Majesty!" _She's holding a pail full of water._

Kinichi "Hm? What?"

Woman "She's deceiving you!"

Kinichi "What?"

_Kida was surprised._

_All of a sudden, she splashed Kida with water._

Kinichi "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

Woman "Feel her aura, Your Majesty. She's not an angel. She's a demon! She deceived you!"

_Kinichi was dumbfounded when he looked at Kida._


	10. Chapter 10

Kida "Your Majesty..." _She gazed at him, terrified._

Kinichi "You're a demon. You tricked me. How dare you sell Lunatea to demons?"

Kida "No, you're misunderstanding me, Your Majesty. I work for the Angel King! Demon Realm knows nothing!"

Kinichi "I... I trusted you, Rina. But why? Why did you deceive me? Why?!"

Kida "Your Majesty! Believe me, please!"

Kinichi "Arrest her!" _He ordered the royal guards angrily._

Kida "No, Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

_She yelled while the guards grabbed her away._

_Kinichi was dumbfounded, standing alone on the snowy ground doing nothing._

* * *

Kida "Save me, please!"

_The guards locked her up inside the prison cell._

Kida "Hey!" _Her lips were trembling from cold._

_She quickly took her phone and called Rui. However, he's not answering. She decided to send him a message instead._

Kida "Your Highness, my cover has been exposed. Please help me."

_She searched for some blanket to cover up her soaked clothes, but she only saw some hay scattered on the ground and she desperately used them to cover herself._

Kida "Your Highness..."

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Meguru "Okay, the meeting ends here. Thanks for coming and prepare now."

All "Yes, Chef!"

_Rui took out his phone and read Kida's message. His eyes widened and his hand was shaking while reading the message._

Rui "Chef, I'm sorry but I cannot work now."

Meguru" Why? Is there something wrong? Hey, are you okay? You're pale."

Rui "Something happened in Angel Realm, Meguru."

Meguru "What?! Okay, better go now. Tell me afterwards what happened."

Rui "Okay, thanks." _He hurriedly left the kitchen._

Chef 2 "Sous Chef! Where is he going?"

_Meguru stayed still._

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

_The Angel King slammed his fist in anger._

Angel King "How did this happen?"

Rui "No idea, Your Majesty. She just said her cover was blown up. Your Majesty, I need to go to Lunatea right now!"

Angel King "You should have done that from the beginning!""

Rui" Yes, I know this is my fault. I'll take responsibility."

Angel King "Okay, you may go now and leave Angel Realm."

Rui "Count on me, Your Majesty. I'll bring back Kida and win over Lunatea." _And he left._

Angel King "Any news from our guards?"

Grand Adviser "None at this moment, Your Majesty."

* * *

Rui "Don't worry, Kida. I'll save you. Please wait for me."

* * *

**~Lunatea~**

_Kinichi went towards Kida's prison cell._

Kida" Your Majesty... " _She slowly lifted up her head._

Kinichi" Are you really a demon?"

Kida "Your Majesty, I didn't deceive you. Please believe me."

Kinichi "No, you did. You want to sell this kingdom to Demon Realm. You take advantage of the current state of Lunatea. However, you're wrong. Although Lunatea is weak right now, I will never hand this over to demons."

Kida "No, Your Majesty! I am working for Angel Realm! I'm not selling this kingdom to demons!"

Kinichi "Prove to me that you're telling the truth."

Kida "Your Majesty, the Angel Prince will come here soon. I'm sure he will."

Kinichi "I trusted you, since I felt your sincerity towards me. I did not expect that it will turn out like this."

Kida "Your Majesty..."

_Kinichi left without saying a word._

* * *

_In his room, Kinichi began to drink again._

Retainer "Your Majesty, why are you drinking again?"

Kinichi "Stop blabbering. Just allow me to enjoy myself."

Retainer "What happened?"

Kinichi "What will you do if the one you trust betrayed you?"

Retainer "W-What are you saying, Your Majesty?"

Kinichi "I trusted her because she's pure and innocent. I started to like her, and this? She betrayed me like this?"

Retainer "Who...?"

Guard "Your Majesty, the Prince of Angel Realm is here!"

_Kinichi was surprised about the announcement._

* * *

_At the palace hall, he confronted Rui._

Rui "Your Majesty."

Kinichi "Nice meeting you in person, Prince Rui. What can I do for you?"

Rui "Where is Kida? Where is she?"

Kinichi "Kida...? Do you mean, Rina?"

Rui "Rina...?"

Kinichi "I see. She's called Kida. She even hid her real name from me."

Rui "Where is she?"

Kinichi "Is she your person?"

Rui "Yes, she's working for Angel realm despite being a demon."

_Kinichi stared at him seriously._

* * *

_Rui hurriedly ran towards Kida's cell._

Rui "Kida! Kida!"

Kida "Your Highness!"

Rui "Are you okay? Are you hurt somewhere?"

Kida "I'm okay..."

_The guard opened the cell._

Rui "Let's go."

He held her hands.

Rui "You're freezing! Come on, hurry!"

_He carried her quickly._

* * *

_Kida was given some dry clothes to wear._

Kida "Where are His Majesty and the Angel Prince?"

Maid "They are in the hall."

Kida "I have to go there."

Maid "Wait, you still have to warm yourself! You're damn cold."

Kida "Don't worry, I'm fine now. I really have to go. _Thanks." She hurriedly left the room._

* * *

Kinichi "So you used her to convince me to surrender my kingdom?"

Rui "We just wanted to help Lunatea, Your Majesty. We have no intentions of destroying it."

_Kinichi went quiet._

Rui "I know you're against this, but is there anything you can do to save Lunatea? I'm pretty sure you already have witnessed how awful is the status of your kingdom. Your people have already settled in Angel Realm. Time will come you will have to suffer here, too. I bet you're already running out of food and other needs, Your Majesty. The people who are working for you are not here anymore. Sooner or later, you will have to abandon this kingdom. Is this what you want? Have you thought of your people suffering because of you?"

_After a while, he took a sheet of paper._

Kinichi "I thought several times about this, Prince Rui. I'm doing this not because I fully accepted the Angel Realm, but because I want to save and protect my kingdom until the very end."

Rui "Does this mean, Lunatea will finally be a part of Angel Realm?"

Kinichi "Yes."

_Kida arrived at the palace hall._

Rui "Thank you, Your Majesty! You will never regret your decision." _He offered a handshake to him._

_Kinichi smiled and they did the handshake._

Kida "That's a relief." _She smiled from afar._

_Kinichi wrote the contract in a sheet of wax paper and ended it with a royal stamp._

Kinichi "There." He gave the paper to Rui.

Rui "You will be given the position of Minister of Defense."

Kinichi "Yes."

Kida "That's a relief, Your Highness!"

Rui "Kida... We did it!" _He smiled happily at her._

Kida "Yes..."_ Suddenly, she fainted._

Rui "Kida! Kida!"

_Kinichi was stunned, while Rui rushed to her and shook her arms._

Rui "Kida! Come back to your senses! Why are you being like this?! Kida!"

_He placed his palm on her forehead._

Rui "She's hot!"

Kinichi "What?"

Rui "I'm sorry but we have to go back to Angel Realm now. She needs to be treated right away."

Kinichi "S-Sure. I'll go there after a few days then."

Rui "Yeah, thanks again, Your Majesty." _He carried her again and rushed outside._

_Kinichi was still looking at the front door, stunned._

Kinichi "Rina..."

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

Angel King "I'm very pleased to hear that news from you, Rui. You did a good job."

Grand Adviser "Indeed. Finally, after so many years, Lunatea will now be a part of our realm!"

Rui "It's nothing, Your Majesty. Kida did the greater work."

Angel Realm "Oh yeah, how is Kida?"

Rui "She's now resting, Your Majesty. I believe she will recover soon."

Angel King "Is that so? That's good to hear, then. I want to give her a reward for a job well done."

Rui "Yes, Your Majesty."

* * *

_Slowly, Rui entered Kida's room._

Rui "This is my fault. If I did not let you leave the palace in the first place, this wouldn't happen. I'm sorry, Kida. I did wrong."

_He put the towel in slightly hot water and placed it on her forehead. He continued to gaze at her sadly._

* * *

Grand Adviser "Kida really is something, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Yeah. I think the day I've been waiting for has finally come."

Grand Adviser "What do you mean, Your Majesty?"

Angel King "When Rui finally becomes responsible." _He smiled with a meaning._

* * *

**~Solaire~**

_Kida's mother, Ryoko, appeared in front of the palace gate. She looked around her, focused. After a while, a royal guard noticed her and approached her._

Guard "Excuse me, who are you?"

Ryoko "Hm? Nothing..."

Guard "Petitions are not yet available, lady."

Ryoko "Um..." _She bowed and left the area when suddenly, the gate opened._

_She slowly peeked inside the gate._

Kouyuu "No, I am only the one who'll leave."

Guard "Yes, Your Highness."

_The crown prince saw Ryoko outside, but the latter ran as fast as she could._

Kouyuu "Isn't that...?"

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

_Rui continued to look after Kida. After a while, she regained consciousness._

Rui "Kida? Are you awake?"

Kida "Rui..."

Rui "That's a relief. You're getting better now. How are you feeling right now?"

Kida "A little better. Thank you for taking care of me."

Rui "No, thank you for getting better."

Kida "All I have now is a slight fever but it's bearable. Oh, so the king of Lunatea really agreed, right? It's not an illusion or something, right?"

Rui "Hey, how come you still care of that while you're sick?"

Kida "That's..."

Rui "My father said he will reward you for what you did."

Kida "Reward? But I nearly destroyed our plan. I didn't take care of myself."

Rui "No, you did everything so you deserve the reward."

Kida "Thanks, Rui." _She flashed a sweet smile._

Rui "Here, have some porridge."

Kida "Thanks. I'll eat well."

Rui "Yeah. (Don't worry. This won't happen again.)" _His happy face turned serious._

* * *

_In the terrace, Rui was thinking of something under the moonlight. He took a small crumbled paper inside his pocket and stared at it._

_He went back to Kida's room to check on her. He found her asleep. Slowly, he approached her and gazed at her sleeping face. Then, he kissed her forehead sweetly._

* * *

_The next day, Kinichi has arrived in the Angel Palace and the ceremony of his appointment as minister of defense has begun._

Angel King "As you all know, Lunatea, the moon kingdom, has finally become a part of Angel Realm. The king, will now be appointed as the head of Ministry of Defense. I am confident that our realm will become stronger than before. Thank you and congratulations to our newly-appointed minister, Minister Sakashita. "

_The angels applauded while Kinichi went to the center wearing his new robe._

* * *

**~Solaire~**

King "Have you heard the news? Lunatea is now a part of Angel Realm. I didn't expect that the king will really give in. "

Sayuri "Really, Your Majesty? We won't end up like Lunatea."

King "Of course. Solaire is Solaire."

Kouyuu "Your Majesty, I have something to say to you."

King "What is it, Kouyuu?"

Kouyuu "I saw..."

King "Who?"

Kouyuu "I saw Lady Ryoko earlier."

_The king was dumbfounded._

King "What...? Where did you see her?"

Kouyuu "Outside the palace gates, Your Majesty."

King "Is that true? Is it really her?"

Kouyuu "Yes, it's really her. I'm sure of it. She's alive!"

King "She's alive... She's alive!"_ His words were trembling._

Kouyuu "Isn't that great, Princess? Your mother is alive."

_Sayuri stared at him with disbelief._

King "Call the eunuch! Hurry!"

Kouyuu "Yes, Your Majesty."

_After a while, the eunuch went inside the room._

Eunuch "Your Majesty."

King "You know Ryoko's face, right?"

Eunuch "Y-Yes, Your Majesty."

King "Order the guards to look for her. If she's not found here in Solaire, look for her in Demon Realm."

Eunuch "But... You said she's already dead-"

King "Hurry!"

_The eunuch bowed his head and went outside._

King "Princess, we will now live with your mother together! She is alive!"

_Sayuri was still stupefied._

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Kakeru "I'm glad that things turned out well for Angel Realm, Rui."

Rui "Yeah. At last, after long years of struggling, Lunatea finally gives in."

Kakeru "Hmm, how I wish we can do that to Solaire, too."

Rui "Solaire's king is pretty stubborn, huh? Have you made up some plans, Kakeru?"

Kakeru "To be honest, not yet. Not a single thing."

Rui "Well, Kida was the one who really contributed the most. Do you have some connections or acquaintances there?"

Kakeru "Connections? Acquaintances?"

_Kakeru paused for a while._

Kakeru "I think I already know what to do." _He smiled mischievously._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

Angel King "I'm glad you're now feeling well, Kida."

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

Angel King "Yes, and you did a great job conquering Lunatea."

Kida "Not at all."

Angel King "I want to give you a reward."

Kida "R-Really?"

Angel King "Name it, and then you'll have it."

Kida "Um, can I think about it first, Your Majesty?"

Angel King "Sure, you can."

_She smiled cheerfully._

* * *

_Inside her room, she found a small note on her bed._

Kida "'How are you? It's been a while. I want to meet you again, Kida. Can you accept my invitation? I'll be waiting at the park in front of Botanical Garden Restaurant in Human Realm. -Rui Nakamura' Rui... Nakamura?! Tomato? Really?! He wants to meet with me? But why? How did this note ended up here anyway?"

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Kida "Whoa... What is this about?"

_She was amazed by the beautifully decorated gazebo at the center of the park. All of a sudden, a waiter approached her._

Waiter "Miss Kida Akina?"

Kida "Huh? Yes, it's me."

Waiter "This way, please."

Kida "Huh?"

_Curious, she followed the waiter that led her to the gazebo._

Waiter "Please wait here for a while."

Kida "Oh?"

_She sat down on the chair and looked around her. Tensed, she clasped her hands together. Then, a black-haired Rui came._

Rui "Miss Kida!"

_Kida was surprised to see him again._

Kida "Rui... It's been a while."

Rui "Yeah. Have a seat." _He smiled weakly._

Kida "So, how's work?"

Rui "Um, it's always busy but I'm having fun."

Kida "That's great!"

Rui "How about you? How do you do?"

Kida "Well, I'm having fun, too. Doing some extraordinary things, heehee."

_He smiled as he take a sip of water._

Waiter "Sir, Miss, please have your orders. I'll be right back."

Rui "Okay, thanks."

Kida "By the way, why do you want to meet me again?"

Rui "Why? You don't want to?"

Kida "No, it's not like that."

Rui "I'm just joking, heehee. Truthfully, I have something to tell you."

Kida "What is it?"

Rui "Kida, please forgive me."

_She stopped smiling as she heard his words._

Rui "I made a big mistake during the cooking competition before."

Kida "What do you mean...?"

Rui "I sabotaged your ingredient."

_She kept quiet while in shock._

Rui "The milk, I added salt in it. I'm sorry."

Kida "Rui..." _Her eyes expressed bewilderment._

Rui "I know, I did a terrible thing. I cheated on you. I only did that because I was so desperate to become a chef no matter what happens."

Kida "Wait..."

Rui "I'm sorry, Kida. I'm really sorry. It keeps on bothering me, so I decided to let these all out. I'm sorry for cheating on you. I'm sorry for hiding my real identity on you."

Kida "Identity...?"

_Rui enveloped himself in a bright light, and his true image was shown. On the other hand, Kida was in great shock of what she saw._

Rui "Yes, it's me, Kida. Prince Rui of Angel Realm, your betrothed. Nakamura and I are one. I'm really sorry." _His eyes were full of sorrow._

_Kida remained silent after all the revelations._

Rui "Please forgive me, Kida!"

_As if her body was frozen, Kida tried to stand up in a slow manner, with her face expressionless. Then, she looked at him directly._

Kida "What else? What else are you hiding from me?!" _She screamed as she burst her tears._

Rui "Kida..." _He reached out to her but she pushed him away._

Kida "Stay away!"

Rui "I know this is not easy to accept and I know you cannot forgive me easily, that's why I concluded to a decision."

_She continued to glare at him._

Rui "I will give up my position as Sous Chef, Kida. I will perform my duties and responsibilities as a prince. After what happened to you, I was awaken. It served as the eye opener to me. But before that, will you accept that position? Will you be the Botanical Garden's Sous Chef?"

_Kida was shocked, dazed, dumbfounded, bewildered, stupefied, you name all the synonyms of shock._


	11. Chapter 11

_Kida's state of shock turned into rage._

Kida "You're mean. You're cruel. How could you say all those things at once?!"

Rui "I know you'll get mad at me, but I still chose to tell you the truth."

Kida "And what do you expect? To forgive you because you're being honest?"

Rui "No, that's not exactly it..."

_All of a sudden, she slapped his face, while her emerald eyes became fiery red. Rui was stunned by her behavior. Shocked as well, she looked at her right hand, shaking. The two went quiet for a while._

Rui "It's okay, you can hurt me as much as you want to. If that's the way you could ease your anger, then do it."

Kida "I'll go now..."

Rui "Wait-"

Kida "I'll be staying at Demon Realm for a while. I hope you'll understand."

Rui "I'm sorry."

Kida "Just leave me alone for now." _Her red eyes went back to normal while looking at him straight in the eyes._

Rui "I understand..."

Kida "Do you know why I hate you so much now?"

_Rui remained silent._

Kida "It's because you're like that person! I badly hoped you're not like him before, but you're not different. Why did you become like him?! Why?!" _She yelled angrily._

_He was still not speaking. Thus, she left the gazebo, distraught, and her tracks were slow like that of a turtle's. Rui looked at her sadly, fading away from his sight._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_Kida hurriedly walked on the pathway._

Maid "Your Highness."

_Kida slightly raised her right hand as a reply and continued to walk. She was surprised when she saw Kinichi along the way._

Kinichi "Your... Highness...?"

Kida "Your Majesty." _Her intonation was like wondering why he's here. _

Kinichi "I'm not a king anymore. I'm a minister now. Are you the princess? How?"

Kida "Well, you could say that, Sire; but I'm not married to Prince Rui. A long story, but you can ask the other ministers about it."

Kinichi "Is that so? Are you okay now? Please forgive me for what happened in Lunatea. I apologize for not trusting you."

Kida "It's fine. I was at fault, too. So, how do you find Angel Realm?"

Kinichi "As expected, it is lively here. Well, I could say that I made the right decision."

Kida "That's great, Sire." _She smiled weakly._

Kinichi "Are you busy? You are quite in a hurry."

Kida "Um, I'm about to go to Demon Realm. I will stay there with my mom first. I missed her already."

Kinichi "Yes, you should."

Kida "Well then." _She bowed and left._

_Kinichi smiled at her._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

Ryoko "Oh? You're here."

Kida "What's with that expression? Don't you miss me?"

Ryoko "Oooh, that's not like you."

Kida "Mom." _She hugged her tightly._

Ryoko "What's wrong?"

Kida "Huh? If I'm hugging you means there's something wrong, Mom?"

Ryoko "Of course! Otherwise, why would you be here?"

Kida "That hurts, Mom! How could you say those things?"

Ryoko "Whatever. So, how did your mission go?"

Kida "It's a success, Mom! All the ancient angel kingdoms are now good as one."

Ryoko "That's good for them, huh. You're great, too. Very great that you helped a foreign realm instead of your own."

Kida "Mom, stop being negative."

Ryoko "I'm serious."

_Kida went quiet._

Ryoko "The truth is, I went to Solaire the other day."

Kida "What?!"

Ryoko "I approached the palace gates, too."

Kida "Mom, are you crazy?!"

Ryoko "I'm not sure if he saw me."

_Kida's eyes widened._

Kida "He? Who...?"

Ryoko "The crown prince."

Kida "Mom! Why are you so stubborn?! I told you not to go near the palace, not even in Soleil! What if he really sees you?"

_Soleil is the capital city and as well as the Solaire palace is located._

Ryoko "And you! When will you come to your senses?!"_  
_

_Kida looked at her, distressed._

Ryoko "Kida, listen carefully. I know Solaire is not good right now, so you have to help your kingdom like the way you did to Lunatea. This is the right time."

Kida "Right time about what, Mom?"

Ryoko "What is your reason for hiding, Kida? I won't tolerate this anymore. I granted your wish before, but not again. Please don't be like this and help Solaire, Your Highness."

Kida "Ugh!" _She scratched her head._

Ryoko "Princess Kida!"

Kida "Stop it, Mom. I'm not the princess."

Ryoko "Why? Are you worried about Sayuri? That's why, go there and introduce yourself as the real Solaire princess and help me knock off your sister's hazy head!"

Kida "Mom! Sayuri will be in danger if I reveal the truth."

Ryoko "Not at all! Since you're the real princess, you'll just beg your father not to exterminate Sayuri."

_Kida let out a heavy sigh._

Ryoko "If you don't want to, then I'll do it instead."

Kida "Tell me, Mom. How will you prove to the king that Sayuri is a fraud?"

Ryoko "You may not know, but your black and white colored wings are the key to everything."

Kida "My... wings?"

Ryoko "Ancient royal families of Solaire have that kind of wings like yours. It's in their blood. You know well, that I'm not originally from Solaire, so Sayuri's wings are not like yours. I don't know what the hell did she do about it, though."

Kida "Mom, just leave Sayuri alone. Let her be. If she doesn't want to be with us, then so do I."

Ryoko "Kida, I want to reveal the truth not only for your sake, but also for your sister. If the king knows that she's a fraud without your presence, he will undoubtedly exterminate her. Please, Kida."

_Kida looked down._

* * *

**~Demon House~**

Kakeru "Do you have a minute, Meguru?"

Meguru "Sure, Brother. I'll just finish this in a jiffy."

_After he finished cutting the fruits, he went to Kakeru._

Meguru "What is it, Brother?"

Kakeru "Have you heard about Lunatea?"

Meguru "Yeah. Angel Realm now has seven ancient kingdoms."

Kakeru "Yeah, and for us, we still have six. Meguru, I know you're the only one who can do this, so please help Demon Realm."

Meguru "Huh? Me?"

Kakeru "Yeah. Perhaps, you can talk to the princess." _ He said hesitantly._

Meguru "Why me?"

Kakeru "Don't be silly, Meguru. I know you have known her already and you have some unexplained past relationship."

Meguru "Brother..."

Kakeru "Tell me, what was your relation with her?"

Meguru "To be honest, she's my ex."

Kakeru "Sigh. And you left Kida for her?"

_Meguru sealed his mouth shut._

Kakeru "Well, I don't know why you did it, but my concern for now is Solaire. Can you help us, Meguru?"

_Meguru was just quietly staring at Kakeru._

Meguru "Brother, do you know where Kida is right now?"

Kakeru "Hmm, the last time we talked to Rui, he said she departed for a mission in Lunatea. Maybe she's back now in Angel Palace. Why?"

Meguru "N-Nothing."

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

_Sayuri was happily walking towards Meguru, who's waiting for her._

Sayuri "I hurriedly came here when you invited me. So, what's up?"

Meguru "Your Highness..."

Sayuri "No, it's fine. You can call me Sayuri. As long as it's only you." _She grinned._

Meguru "Actually, about Solaire..."

_Sayuri's happy expression suddenly changed._

Meguru "You see, the Demon Realm can help you-"

Sayuri "If you only called me just to convince me, I'll go now."

Meguru "Sayuri, wait."

_She turned back at him._

Sayuri "If you're that desperate, I have one condition."

Meguru "What condition?"

Sayuri "Marry me."

Meguru "What?!"

Sayuri "You heard it right. Marry me, and I'll do everything in my power to surrender Solaire to Demon Realm."

Meguru "How will you do it?"

Sayuri "I'll convince the king himself. He's giving me all I want, so I'm sure he'll listen to me regarding your plea."

_Meguru stood up from his seat._

Meguru "I'll get back to work now." He left.

Sayuri "Hey! Meguru!"

* * *

_Inside the kitchen, Rui approached Meguru._

Rui "Chef."

Meguru "Oh? What is it?"

Rui "I have something to tell you."

* * *

_Meguru and Rui went inside the chef's office._

Meguru "Prince Rui, what is it?"

Rui "Meguru, I'm sorry, but I have to resign."

_Meguru was shocked._

Meguru "Why?"

Rui "Unlike you, my life and my body are not mine. Because I'm the Angel Prince, I cannot do anything in my own will. I have plenty of duties and responsibilities in Angel Realm, especially now that the territory became larger. I'm sorry for quitting. I'm beginning to accept my fate now."

Meguru "I fully understand you, Prince Rui, but are you sure about this?"

Rui "Time will come that I have to give up my profession as a chef. Before anything else worsens, I will quit right now."

Meguru "I really admire you, Prince Rui. I admire your great sense of leadership and love for your kingdom. I'm just curious about one thing. What made you quit your dream?"

_Rui paused for a while before speaking._

Rui "Because of my negligence and immaturity, someone I hold dear has thrown into danger. I don't want it to happen again."

Meguru "Someone... you hold dear...?"

Rui "Instead, I will bring someone who'll replace my position as Sous Chef."

Meguru "Really? Who is it?"

Rui "You'll know about it soon." _He smiled._

* * *

**~Angel Palace~**

_Rui kept on staring at his phone, specifically, staring at Kida's photo. Unable to resist, he messaged her._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

_Kida was surprised to see Rui's text message._

_Rui "Are you still awake?"_

_She put down her phone at first. After a while, she took it back and replied to him._

* * *

_Kida "Yes. I'll sleep after a few minutes. You, too."_

_Rui typed the words 'Okay. I miss you.'_

* * *

Kida "I miss... you?" _She sighed._

* * *

**~Solaire~**

_Early in the morning, Kida has arrived in Soleil. She wandered around the town and observed the said place. While walking, she found a small dining place and decided to dine there._

Lady "Welcome, customer."

Kida "Miso ramen, please."

Lady "Coming right up."

_She looked around her, and a thought came to her wherein she, her mother and sister were eating happily in this place. She smiled unconsciously, but then faded slowly. After a while, the waitress brought her ordered ramen._

Kida "Thanks. Wow, I miss this one." _She started to eat it._

Man 1 "Hey, where did your friend transfer?"

Man 2 "At the countryside in Demon Realm. How about you? You will transfer, too?"

Man 1 "I can't, even if I want to. I cannot leave the rice fields."

Man 3 "Same here as well."

Man 4 "Hey, look at this."

_The three men curiously peeked at the sheet of paper the other man has brought in._

Man 2 "A war? Against the king?"

_Kida stopped eating as she overheard the conversation._

Man 4 "Yes. We are currently recruiting demons to be our soldiers. Living here in Solaire is like a hell for us commoners. Only the royals and aristocrats are benefiting."

Man 3 "I like it. Let's fight for our rights and the present king should be removed from his post!"

_Kida stared at them in horror. Suddenly, an empty wine bottle beside the men's table fell on the floor._

Man 1 "Ugh! It startled me!"

Man 3 "L-Look! That woman! It's her doing!"

Man 2 "What?!"

Man 4 "Do you want to fight?"

Kida "Leave the king alone."

Man 1 "She overheard our conversation!"

Man 2 "If you're protecting the king, it means you're an enemy, too!"

_The men took out their weapons. Kida stared at them for a while, and she quickly left the place and ran._

Man 4 "After her!"

* * *

_Kida was chased by four demons, but she suddenly stopped and faced them._

Man 3 "That demon has the telekinesis ability. Our short ranged weapons are no match against her."

Man 2 "That's why, we have to use these."

_They took out small black balls which turned out to be bombs. Kida stared at the nearby wooden table and threw it towards the men using her ability._

Man 1 "Damn it!" _He threw a bomb towards her, but a shield came out of nowhere._

_She was surprised to see a young man, has short, straight black hair, wearing glasses._

Kouyuu "How shameful of you fighting a woman."

_The shield faded and he took out his sword._

Kouyuu "Fight me instead."

Man 3 "You? Against the four of us?"

Kouyuu "Don't underestimate me."

_The four men attacked Kouyuu at once but he managed to battle them. __In order to help, Kida took away the weapon held by one of the men using her psychic powers and threw it on the ground._

Man 4 "You! Don't meddle in our fight!"

_He threw a bomb once again, but Kida successfully dodged it by jumping and flying mid-air. Kouyuu was shocked to see familiar wings. After a while, the four demons were defeated._

Kida "Thank you."

Kouyuu "Are you fine?"

Kida "Yes, thanks for helping me."

Kouyuu "Next time, don't come to this spot alone."

Kida "I fought them since they're planning to harm the king."

Kouyuu "Harm the king?"

_The guard of the crown prince butted in._

Guard "Your Highness! What happened?"

Kida "(Your... Highness?)"

Kouyuu "This is nothing. It's just a small fight. By the way, I have to go now."

Kida "Are you... a prince?"

Kouyuu "Yes. Sorry if I didn't inform you earlier. I'm Kouyuu, the crown prince of Solaire. What is your name?"

Kida "(Kouyuu?) I'm Kida."

Kouyuu "Kida? Well then, take care." _He left with his guard._

Kida "Brother... He's my brother."

_Kouyuu turned back, remembering what Kida has said about the king, but she was already gone._

Kouyuu "(Her wings... are like mine. But why? Who is she?)"

* * *

**~Angel Realm~**

Since their quarrel, Rui was sending bouquet of flowers to Kida everyday, placing them in her empty room.

On the fourth day, he brought another bouquet.

Rui "When will you come back? I hope you can still see these flowers in bloom."

He placed the fourth bouquet on the bed.

Kida "Your Highness..."

Rui was surprised to see Kida again.

Rui "You came back! You came back!" He suddenly hugged her.

Kida "Your Highness."

Rui "Do you forgive me already? You're not mad at me anymore?"

She smiled calmly.

Rui "Is it a yes?"

Kida "Yes, but what are those flowers?"

Rui "Oh, they're for you."

Kida approached the bouquets astonishingly.

Rui "Do you like it? I'm not sure what flowers you like but they're all pretty."

Kida "Why?"

Rui "I want you to feel my sincere apology."

She stared at the flowers one more time before smiling brightly at him.

Kida "Thank you, Your Highness."

Rui "Please call me Rui."

Kida "Yes. Rui. Heehee. (I'm glad that I forgive him already. But, why do I find it hard to forgive Meguru?) By the way, your offer..."

Rui "Hm?"

Kida "I'll accept it. I will be the Sous chef of the Botanical Garden restaurant."

Rui "Really? That's great! You will have fun working there. Thank you, Kida." He gave a sweet smile.

* * *

**~Restaurant~**

Meguru explained Rui's situation to his fellow chefs.

Meguru "I know it's such a waste to lose a chef like Rui in our kitchen, but I believe that we can trust his recommendation regarding our new Sous chef. Rui, if you may?"

Rui "Before anything else, I would like to thank everyone for working with me here. I really did enjoy every moment I spent in this kitchen. I have learnt new things from you guys, and I believe you also have learnt many things from me as well. During my absence, I want you to take care of your new chef like you did to me. Everyone, I would like you to meet the new Sous chef, Miss Kida Akina."

The other chefs were giving her a round of applause as she entered the kitchen, while Meguru was shocked to see her. When she stood beside Rui, she glanced at Meguru.


	12. Chapter 12

_Ryoko "When you love someone, you feel like the whole world is only revolving around him. However, no matter how deep your love is for each other but you're not meant to be together, you'll never be together. I hope what I had gone through won't ever happen to my daughters."_

**Flashback**

**~Solaire~**

_The king and queen of Solaire were looking at young Kouyuu playing and running around outside the balcony under the peaceful sunlight._

King "Kouyuu is such a free-spirited young boy, isn't it?"

Queen "Yes, Your Majesty. It makes me happy and it feels as if he's my own son."

King "Hmm, is that so?"

Queen "Yes, Your Majesty. I will take care of him very well."

Palace Maid "Your Majesty, Her Highness is here."

King "Okay, let her come here."

_Ryoko, who was the concubine of the king of Solaire, entered the balcony and joined the king and queen. The queen, on the other hand, showed an unpleasant face._

Ryoko "His Majesty, Her Majesty."

King "Welcome. Have a seat."

Ryoko "Yes, Your Majesty."

_The queen gave her a forced smile._

King "How's the little one inside?"

Ryoko "The child's fine, Your Majesty. I'm taking care of this well."

King "That's great. Since I already have a son, I want that child to be a daughter."

Ryoko "I hope so, too, Your Majesty."

_The queen was quiet during their conversation._

* * *

_Angrily, the queen entered the palace kitchen._

Cook "Your Majesty, what brings you here?"

_She closed her fist in anger while feeling her stomach. She then repeatedly hit her stomach with her hands._

Cook "Your Majesty! What are you doing?" The cook stopped the queen from hurting herself.

Queen "Because of this infertile body, I am humiliated every time the king is talking about his son. We all know that Ryoko was his greatest love. The son is too much to bear already, and I won't allow that he'll have another one soon, especially to his past lover!"

Cook "What do you mean... Your Majesty?"

Queen "Listen to me, do it again."

Cook "W-What?"

Queen "The one you did to the prince's mother. Here, take this poison."

Cook "N-No, Your Majesty... I can't... anymore."

Queen "How dare you disobey my order? Which is important to you, the concubine's life, or your life?"

_The cook was staring at her, afraid._

* * *

Palace Maid "Your Highness, your dinner is here."

Ryoko "Thank you." _She was happily looking at the gold necklace with yellow sapphire gem placed inside the sun-shaped pendant._

_The maid placed the food tray on the table and left. When she was about to get the bowl of food, a cook suddenly barged inside her room._

Cook "Your Highness!"

_Ryoko was startled._

Cook "Forgive me for barging in, Your Highness!" _She suddenly threw the food bowls and platters on the floor._

Ryoko "What are you doing?!"

Cook "Your Highness, please listen to me. That food has poison."

Ryoko "W-What did you say?"

Cook "To be honest, I was ordered by the queen to poison you. Your Highness, the truth is, I poisoned the prince's mother, too."

_Ryoko was shocked to hear everything._

Cook "I don't want to do it again, and I couldn't bear to kill a child, so I'm telling you this now. It's better for you to leave the palace immediately. Your life is in danger. Please save your child, Your Highness!"

_In horror, Ryoko hurriedly abandoned the palace._

* * *

King "What?! Her Highness has disappeared?!"

Palace Maid "Yes, Your Majesty. She dismissed us last night, but when we returned to our post this morning, her room is already empty."

King "What?!"

Eunuch "Your Majesty, a witness to Her Highness' disappearance is requesting an audience."

_The king was surprised, telling the eunuch to let her in._

Cook "Your Majesty."

_The queen was alarmed as she saw the cook._

King "Tell us quickly, do you know where she went?"

Cook "Your Majesty... I told her to leave the palace! She and her child are in danger!" _ Her voice shivered._

King "What did you say?"

_The cook told the king everything about the queen's crimes._

* * *

**~Coronia, the east city of Solaire~**

_Ryoko was screaming for help as she was about to give birth. Then, a lot of people approached her but only one person helped her. And that is, Sayuri's future father._

* * *

**~Soleil Palace~**

_After the cook revealed everything, the king has decided to exterminate his queen and later he has done the act._

King "Please, please help me find Ryoko and my child."

Eunuch "Yes, Your Majesty."

* * *

**~Coronia~**

_After several years, Ryoko and her new family were living a peaceful and a simple life._

Sayuri "Ugh, Dad is not yet here. I'm already hungry."

Kida "Tsk, just eat this bread first."

Sayuri "No, I want to wait the food from Dad."

Father "My daughters, Dad is home."

Sayuri "Dad!"

_The two ladies welcomed their father happily._

Father "Look what I have here, buttermilk cookies fresh from Soleil!"

Kida "Really?! Wow, this is good!"

Sayuri "It's a good thing I waited Dad's food, heehee."

_Ryoko was happily watching her daughters eating together._

* * *

_Sayuri "There's only one person I'm willing to give my whole life to. I love him to the point that I even sacrificed my own family just to have him. I did have him, but I lost him. I don't want to end up like Mom, so this time, I'll definitely make sure to get him back."_

_Due to unknown disease that had spread in Coronia, Kida and Sayuri's father had died. After a week, they visited their late father's grave._

Kida "Father, we're already here."

Sayuri "Father, today we brought you your favorite flowers." _The ladies placed the sunflowers on the grave._

Kida "Father was cute, wasn't it? He liked sunflowers even if he's a man."

Sayuri "I know, right? I hope he's okay wherever he is right now."

Kida "Yes. So starting today, we really have to take care of Mom."

* * *

**~Marketplace~**

Kida "What's with those vegetables, Sayuri? Are you going to cook?"

Sayuri "Of course! Why? You don't want me to?"

Kida "No, of course you can. (Sheesh, is she even aware how bad her cooking is? Well, that's my sister. She loves to cook even having poor skills on it.)"

Sayuri "I will cook your favorite miso ramen, Kida. The one you're eating at Soleil."

Kida "Shhh, don't tell Mom that we have gone there, okay?"

Sayuri "Huh? Why?"

Kida "Didn't you know? She doesn't like us to go to capital."

Sayuri "Really?"

Midori "Kida! Sayuri!"

Kida "Midori! Long time no see!"

Midori "Yeah! Wait, do you know the latest news in Solaire?"

Sayuri "Huh? What is it?"

Midori "Heh? You have no idea? Well, the Princes of Demon Realm will visit in Solaire! I heard they're pretty good-looking. The ladies here are damn crazy about them."

Sayuri "For real?"

Midori "Of course! They'll have a royal parade in Soleil on Wednesday. Let's go there, okay?"

Sayuri "Kida, let's go to Soleil, please!"

Kida "How about Mom?"

Sayuri "Well, we'll just go there without her knowing. Midori, you'll help us, right?"

Midori "Count me in!"

Kida "Seriously?"

* * *

_While looking for something inside Ryoko's cabinet, Sayuri accidentally found her mother's yellow sapphire necklace._

Sayuri "Wow, it's very pretty. This really looks like a sun. Whoa, Mom has this kind of necklace?"

Ryoko "Sayuri?"

Sayuri "Mom!" _ She put down the necklace._

Ryoko "Do you like it?"

Sayuri "Hm? You mean, this? Sorry, Mom. I didn't intend to intrude into your things."

Ryoko "It's okay."

Sayuri "This necklace is very pretty, Mom. Where did you buy this?"

Ryoko "No, someone has given that to me."

Sayuri "Is it from Dad?"

_Ryoko smiled without replying._

Sayuri "Mom, can I wear this for a while?"

Ryoko "Yeah, but be sure to take care of it properly."

Sayuri "I will, Mom. Thanks!" _She happily wore the necklace._

* * *

**~Soleil~**

_The demons were excitedly waiting for the parade of Kakeru and Meguru._

Sayuri "Kida, hurry!"

Kida "I'm moving, alright?"

_The ladies squeezed themselves in front of the crowd._

Royal Guard "Make way! Make way! The princes of Demon Realm is coming!"

_The crowd was whispering here and there._

Sayuri "Kida, they're coming!"

Kida "Yeah."

_The royal parade began with the drum and bass, followed by the soldiers carrying the flag and crest of Demon Realm. Next, Kakeru and Meguru were sitting on the royal float accompanied by more soldiers._

_Sayuri was staring at Meguru astonishingly._

Sayuri "They really are handsome. I'm glad I came, Kida!"

Kida "Really? Are you that happy?"

Sayuri "Of course! Say, Kida, how about you go on the older prince, and I'm going to the one with silver hair since you're the older one and I'm the younger one."

Kida "Sheesh. Whatever."

_She took out her phone and found a message from Meguru, saying, 'I saw you. I miss you already." She replied by saying 'I saw you, too. I miss you more." She pressed 'send' and hid her I-can't-help-it-but-grin face from Sayuri. _

Sayuri "Kida, I'm going over there to look some more."

Kida "But-"

Sayuri "I'll be right back!"_ She hurriedly went off._

Kida "Hey! Don't get lost!"

* * *

_Afternoon came, but Sayuri was still not coming back._

Sayuri "I'm lost. What should I do? Kida! Kida!" On her way, she saw a group of royal soldiers eating together.

Sayuri "Excuse me. Could you tell me the way to Coronia?"

Soldier "Why? Are you lost?"

Sayuri "I'm afraid so."

_Then, the king of Solaire arrived. The soldiers stood immediately and greeted the king._

King "I'm finished with my appointment already."

_The king noticed Sayuri, but was more shocked when he saw the necklace._

King "Who are you...? Why are you wearing that necklace?"

_Sayuri was surprised when the king slowly approached her._

King "Why do you have this?"

Sayuri "This? This is my mother's."

King "What? Your mother...?" _The king's eyes became teary as he stared at her._

Sayuri "Your Majesty..."

King "Are you my daughter? My daughter..."

Sayuri "(Daughter...?)"

King "My daughter! Thank goodness I have found you at last!" _The king embraced the shocked Sayuri._

* * *

King "You mean, your mother is already dead?"

Sayuri "Yes, Your Majesty. There was a strange disease that has spread all over Coronia, so we were separated but someone told me about her sudden death."

King "How pitiful. I didn't even do something for her. Is she your only family?"

Sayuri "I have a little sister, but she died, too."

King "Sorry to hear that, but from now on, you won't be lonely anymore. I'm already here. We will live happily in the palace. Your brother is waiting for you, too. Starting tomorrow, you will be the princess of Solaire. I will introduce you to the entire kingdom."

Sayuri "No! I mean, there's no need to introduce me to the entire Solaire, Your Majesty. Simple coronation in the palace will do."

King "Is it fine with you? Okay, I will do what you want. I'm glad that you're not extravagant. That's my daughter." _He patted her head._

Sayuri "Thanks, Your Majesty. (So Kida is the real princess. I wonder if she already knows? I'm sorry Kida, but I'm just doing this for me to be recognized by the younger prince. Since I'm a princess now, I'm sure I'm now suitable for him.)"

* * *

**~Coronia~**

After a few days...

Ryoko "Kida, any news about Sayuri?"

Kida "Mom, I've finally seen her."

Ryoko "Really?! Where is she?!"

Kida "She became a princess."

Ryoko "What? A princess?"

Kida "Yeah. The princess of Solaire. I saw her in Soleil earlier, wearing royal robes and fancy accessories. She's with the king."

Ryoko "How could she do that to us?! Especially to you. This is my fault. I should have told you about this sooner. I should have presented you to your real father right away. I'm sorry, Kida. This is my fault. Don't worry, I'll make sure to give you your rightful place."

Kida "Mom, don't worry about me. I'm not that interested to be the princess. I just want to live a simple life with you, Mom. Just let Sayuri for a while."

Ryoko "Kida, I'm sure Sayuri will return to us with her own two feet. Let's wait for that time then."

* * *

**~Culinary School, Italy~**

Sayuri "So this place is his school. I'm excited to see him at last. Oh, they have their own restaurant, too."

She sat and asked the waiter about Meguru.

Sayuri "Excuse me, is there a culinary student that has a silver hair?"

Waiter "Yes, there is."

Sayuri "Um, can you call him for me? He's my friend, by the way."

Waiter "Very well." _ The waiter left the table._

* * *

_After a while, Meguru showed up in front of her._

Meguru "Who...?" _He was confused._

Sayuri "Hello, Prince. Nice meeting you. I'm a demon, too." She whispered.

_Meguru was surprised._

Meguru "Do you know me?"

Sayuri "Yes! Hi, I'm Sayuri! And you are?" _She offered a handshake._

Meguru "I'm Meguru Kamui." _He accepted the handshake._

_Sayuri smiled very cheerfully._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

_After more than two years after Meguru's departure, Kida and her relationship with him has fallen apart. She stared at her laptop monitor, while the pictures of her and Meguru were displayed. While her tears were slowly falling on her face, she pressed the Delete key on the keyboard which resulted to wipe out the entire photo album._

**End of the flashback**

* * *

_Kida "What mistake did I commit for you to leave me alone? Am I not enough? Didn't I make you happy? It's sad for me that you don't even realize how deep my love is for you. However, my sealed heart has opened once again, but this time, it doesn't beat for you. It's now for the person standing beside me."_ _She looked at Rui._

Rui "She's a skilled one, Chef."

Meguru "I see. Very well, I accept Ms. Akina as the new Sous chef. Everyone, please welcome her to our kitchen."

The chefs gladly gave her a warm applause.

Kida "Hello, everyone. Thank you for welcoming me here."

Meguru "Chefs, please introduce yourselves."

Satoshi "Satoshi Koudou, in charge of main course."

Hyun Woo "Cha Hyun Woo, in charge of pastas."

Takeshi "Takeshi Miyamura, in charge of desserts."

Shin "Shin Kimura, in charge of salads."

Young Joon "Han Young Joon, in charge of pastas."

Yusuke "Yusuke Hinata, in charge of appetizers."

Seung Yoo "Kim Seung Yoo, kitchen assistant."

Meguru "Okay, all set. Today is your first day of work, is it okay with you?"

Kida "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "Good. I'll give you some briefing about your work and then you're ready to go."

Kida "Yes, Chef." She glanced at Rui, while the latter was smiling at her.

* * *

The kitchen began to operate. As Meguru was announcing all the orders, the chefs were busy preparing their dishes. Then, he moved around and monitored the chefs.

Meguru "Are you almost done?"

Shin "Y-Yes, Chef. I'll do this very fast!"

Meguru "It's okay. Take your time." He smiled as he patted Shin's shoulder.

Shin "(Huh? Why is he smiling out of nowhere?)"

Meguru "What are you doing with the meatballs?"

Young Joon "Sorry, Chef. I'll do it again."

Meguru "Okay. Do it better."

Young Joon "Yes... Chef. (Is he not lecturing me?)"

Suddenly, Seung Yoo accidentally thrown the bowl of broth on the floor.

Meguru "What happened?"

Young Joon "Sorry, Chef! I'll clean this up right away! No, I'll get the new one first before cleaning this up!" And hurriedly went off.

Meguru was about to yell, but he did a great job to control his anger.

Meguru "Okay, go ahead." He said in a nice way.

The chefs were glancing at him strangely.

Kida "(What's with this atmosphere?)" She presented the main dish to Meguru.

Meguru "Okay, good job." And rang the buzzer.

Satoshi "(What? Did he even check her dish thoroughly?)"

* * *

During break time, the chefs were talking together about Meguru's strange atmosphere.

Yusuke "Right? He's really kind today. He didn't even yell at any of us!"

Hyun Woo "I thought I was the only one who noticed. He's acting strange, right?"

Takeshi "Maybe because of our new Sous chef? Maybe he wants to impress her!"

Shin "Absolutely right! Now we know his weakest point!"

* * *

Meguru "Kida, how do you find the kitchen?"

Kida "It's nice. Everyone is nice, too. I'm impressed with the equipment and stuff. You're good at handling people, too."

Meguru "Well, thanks. If you need anything, just tell me."

Kida "Thanks, Chef."

Meguru "So, where are you staying now?"

Kida "I rented back my apartment room near here. How about you? Demon House?"

Meguru "Yeah. Um, is it okay for me to accompany you on your way home tonight?"

Kida "N-No it's okay. I can manage to go home safely."

Meguru "Are you sure? Then at least allow me to be with you until outside."

Kida "Okay..."

* * *

Before closing the restaurant, Meguru gathered his people for the daily short meeting.

Meguru "Okay, for tonight's meeting, I just want to tell everyone that... be safe in going home and see you tomorrow. Dismissed."

Yusuke "Huh? That's all, Chef?"

Meguru "Yes. That's all. You may go now."

The chefs looked at each other, puzzled. Meguru was smiling while stealing glances at Kida.

* * *

Outside the restaurant, Kida was startled to see Rui waiting for her.

Kida "Your Highness, what are you doing here?"

Rui "Shhh! Don't call me that."

Kida "Sorry."

Rui "Of course I'm here to take you home."

Kida "Really?"

Rui "How's your first day?"

Kida "It's very busy yet overwhelming at the same time. I'm glad I accepted the position."

Rui "Glad to hear that from you."

Kida "Aren't you regretting?"

Rui "Well, a bit, but I'm okay now. What is important for me, is that you're happy with what you're doing. That's more than enough for me."

Kida "Rui."

He drew his face closer to her and he gave her a soft and sweet kiss. To her surprise, Kida widened her eyes. His arms enveloped her body as they kissed. When the two faces went apart, Meguru's dumbfounded and hurt face was being seen from afar.


	13. Chapter 13

_Rui's eyes were shimmering as he was staring at Kida sweetly._

Rui "Are you shocked?"

Kida "H-Huh?"

Rui "Or you're just pretending to be shocked?"

Kida "What does that mean?"

Rui "I'm joking! Heehee. But, if you're that shocked, I guess you're really a blockhead."

Kida "No, it's just that... I didn't expect you to do that to me."

Rui "I'm sorry for being late to be honest with you. I love you."

_Her eyes were wide open._

Rui "But I know already, too, that you love me as well."

Kida "W-What? Wow! You sure are shameless."

Rui "I know right?"

_She smiled as if a thorn was finally taken from inside._

Kida "(So it's not only me after all. He loves me, too. What to do? I'm so happy I couldn't even able to speak.)"

Rui "I know what your smile means."

Kida "(Really? You really do? Then what is it?)" _She kept on smiling._

Rui "You felt relieved that it's not an unrequited love, am I right?"

Kida "(Whoa! H-How did he know what I'm thinking? Does he have some telepathic ability or something?)" _Her widened eyes spoke for her._

Rui "Yes."

Kida "(W-What?! For real? So he has heard all of my thoughts after all?)"

Rui "What's with you? Why aren't you saying anything?"

Kida "(Huh? Is it not real?) I'm too overwhelmed, that's why."

Rui "Tell me that you love me, too."

Kida "No way." _She looked away shyly._

Rui "Why? I want to hear it from you."

kida "But you already know it."

Rui "Even so!"

_She cleared her throat before speaking._

Kida "I... I love you... too." _She spoke in a low voice._

Rui "What's with that? I can't hear you."

Kida "I love you."

_He grinned happily while giving her a teasing look._

Kida "Ugh! Stop telling me to do things like that!"

_From afar, Meguru weakly went back to the restaurant._

* * *

**~Golden Palace Condominium~**

Kida "So, we're officially together now, right?"

Rui "Of course! Are you happy?"

Kida "Yes, I am. How about you?"

Rui "I'm happier."

Kida "Whoa... But Rui, do I still have to act as your fiancee? I mean, the rumor is completely gone now, right?"

Rui "What do you mean act? This time, it's for real."

Kida "Huh? I'm not yet ready to get married for real!"

Rui "You're mean. You're rejecting me now." _He stared at her with his sad puppy eyes._

Kida "(Ugh, he's too cute!)"

Rui "You're red! Heehee."

Kida "Whose fault is this?"

Rui "So cute." _He picked her cheeks and stretched them._

Kida "Hey!"

_The apartment lobby was filled with laughter._

* * *

**~The Botanical Garden~**

_Kida lively entered the kitchen._

Kida "Good morning everyone!"

Chefs "Good morning, Chef!"

_She looked at Meguru who didn't greet her back._

Meguru "Okay, everyone. Time to prepare."

All "Yes, Chef!"

Meguru "Satoshi, prepare the lobster."

Satoshi "Yes, Chef."

Kida "I'll help you."

Satoshi "Really? Thanks, Chef!"

_Kida and Satoshi went inside the freezer and took two fresh lobsters. Afterwards, Kida slowly placed the lobster on the heated pan._

Meguru "Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

Kida "Huh...?" _She was surprised by Meguru's sudden approach._

Meguru "Why did you put it under heat right away? You should hammer its head first before cooking."

Kida "What? It's not necessary to do that anymore. It will only take some time. Just cook it directly. It will taste better."

Meguru "I didn't know you're that cruel, Sous Chef. Aren't you aware that it's still alive? See how much he's struggling right now. You should hammer its head first before everything else."

Kida "Cruel? There's nothing wrong with lobsters being cooked alive!"

Meguru "Of course there is. They are living things, too. Moreover, that's the proper way of cooking lobsters."

Kida "But other chefs are doing that, too. There's nothing wrong about it, Chef. Besides, lobsters cannot really feel pain."

Meguru "No, they are. So you're going to do the same just because other chefs are doing it?"

_Other chefs were quietly staring at them._

Satoshi "Chefs, that's enough."

Meguru "Satoshi, for the other one, use the hammer when killing the lobster before putting it on the pan. Got it?"

Satoshi "Yes, Chef!"

_Meguru went back to his table._

Satoshi "Sorry Chef, but I have to follow his order."

_Kida was left devastated._

* * *

_Outside the kitchen, Kida was sitting alone the dining area._

Shin "Chef, are you okay?"

Kida "Huh? Yeah, of course."

Shin "We all heard the argument earlier. You see, some of us agree with you. It's not like the lobsters can feel pain and the like. But that's Chef for you. He insists on what he wants."

Kida "Yeah. That's really him and we can't do anything about it."

Shin "By the way, Chef. Actually, I have something to tell you."

Kida "Hm? What is it?"

Shin "The truth is..."

* * *

Kakeru "Meguru, are you doing fine here?"

Meguru "Yes, Brother. Why did you ask?"

Kakeru "I know. Kida is here, working with you. How do you feel about it?"

Meguru "Truthfully, we had an argument earlier."

Kakeru "Argument? About what?"

Meguru "Well, it's just small, but I'm greatly affected by it. I'm not in the mood today as well."

Kakeru "Why? What's the matter?"

Meguru "Brother... Kida..."

Kakeru "Huh? What about her?"

Meguru "I saw Kida and Rui kissed last night."

Kakeru "What? Really?"

Meguru "Yes. That's why I'm very upset. I didn't know it hurts like this very much."

Kakeru "Meguru."

Meguru "I didn't know they like each other. I'm planning to get her back and yet, that happened."

Kakeru "Meguru, do you still love her?"

_Meguru stared at him with a sad face._

Meguru "Of course, I do, Brother. A lot."

Kakeru "Then why did you leave her three years ago?"

_Meguru kept quiet._

Kakeru "It's okay. Tell me."

Meguru "Actually, I fell in love with Sayuri just because she's very interested in cooking unlike Kida before. I was overwhelmed because of that and it made me happy. She doesn't disappoint me and we always talked about cooking when we're in Italy. However, the longer our relationship has gone through, the sooner I realized that I still love Kida. I mean, she's really something. That's the time I decided to break up with Sayuri and focused on my studies until I came back here."

_Kakeru let out a big sigh._

Kakeru "I see. So, have you told her about it?"

_Meguru shook his head._

Kakeru "Why don't you tell her? The thorns inside your heart will soon disappear."

Meguru "What for? She loves Prince Rui now."

Kakeru "Are you giving up already?"

_Meguru stared at him intensely._

Kakeru "You will never know if you try."

Meguru "Brother..."

* * *

_Kida thought deeply about the matter Shin has said._

Shin "Yusuke, Takeshi and I were offered by the other restaurant some higher positions and bigger salary, Chef. Actually, the offer is good for us and we wanted to accept it."

Kida "I guess Meguru has to know."

* * *

_Kida knocked on Meguru's door._

Meguru "Come in."

_Kida slowly entered the office._

Meguru "What is it?" _He asked stiffly._

Kida "Chef, our chefs said that they were scouted by other restaurant."

Meguru "What? Scouted?"

Kida "Yes."

Meguru "If they're interested, let them be."

Kida "What? You should stop them, Chef!"

Meguru "Why should I? I'm not forcing people to remain by my side if they don't like to."

Kida "Meguru... Why the hell are you like this?"

Meguru "How about you? Do you want them to keep at your side against their will?"

Kida "It's not like that. What I'm saying is, you at least show them that you care for them as colleagues."

Meguru "I cannot do anything about it anymore. It's their choice so let them be."

Kida "What is wrong with you?!"

_Meguru didn't react at all. Devastated, she left the office. He looked at the shut door sadly._

_Outside the room, Kida leaned on the door while thinking deeply._

Kida "Why are you treating me like this, Meguru? More importantly, Why does it hurt?"

* * *

**~Solaire~**

Kouyuu "Your Majesty, I'll help you with the petitions."

King "Sure thing."

_Kouyuu was reading the petitions first before submitting it to the king. Other petitions were being rejected, though._

King "What are those, Kouyuu?"

Kouyuu "Don't mind them, Your Majesty. They are nothing but telling you to step down or to be allied with Demon Realm."

_The king sighed heavily._

_As he opened the next petition, Kouyuu was shocked while reading it. His hands were trembling as he held the scroll._

King "Kouyuu? What's the matter?"

Kouyuu "Y-Your Majesty..."

King "What's wrong? Let me see it."

Kouyuu "But..."

King "Hurry."

_Kouyuu handed the scroll to the king._

King "The princess of Solaire is a... fraud..." _His eyes were in shock._

Kouyuu "Your Majesty..."

King "She doesn't have the royal blood of Solaire. However, please refrain her from extermination in exchange of the information about your real daughter." _His voice were trembling as he read the petition._

Kouyuu "Your Majesty! Are you okay?"

King "Your daughter, the real princess, is alive." _He is in great shock._

_Kouyuu approached the king._

King "Kouyuu, find the one who submitted this petition immediately!"

Kouyuu "Father! Are you sure about this? Do you believe this easily?"

King "Listen, please refrain from letting this out. This is only between the two of us. We should not let the whole kingdom know until we're sure enough."

Kouyuu "But..."

King "Please. Find this sender for me!"

Kouyuu "Y-Yes, Your Majesty." _He went outside anxiously._

* * *

**~Golden Palace~**

Kida "Rui..."

Rui "How are you today? How's work?"

_Kida didn't answer._

Rui "Why? Is there something wrong? Your face seemed down."

Kida "I'm sorry. I'm just tired at work."

Rui "Okay then."

Kida "Why are you here?"

Rui "I'm staying here with you."

Kida "Then what happened to the responsible prince of Angel Realm?"

Rui "Well, I cannot live without you apart from me."

Kida "Rui..."

Rui "So, just let me stay here with you."

Kida "Thank you." _ She held his hands firmly._

* * *

_As she laid down on her bed, Kida thought about her conflict with Meguru._

Kida "We were getting along well yesterday, but why is he treating me coldly right now? Ugh, why am I so bothered about it?"

_She shook her head._

Kida "No, it can't be. I know very well. I love Rui. That's right, I love Rui. I shouldn't be like this. I have to be sure of what I feel." _Restless, she covered her eyes with her arms while flipping her feet._

* * *

**~The Botanical Garden~**

Meguru "What is this?"

Yusuke "Chef, we're presenting to you our resignation letter."

_They placed three envelopes on Meguru's desk._

Meguru "Are you sure about this?"

Shin "Y-Yes, Chef. We are sorry, but our living is depending on this right now."

_Meguru let out a sigh._

Meguru "I guess I have nothing to do about this anymore."

Takeshi "Thank you for understanding, Chef."

_Meguru stared at them calmly._

* * *

**~Kitchen~**

Hyun Woo "Is it true, Chef? Those Japanese ones were being scouted?"

Kida "Yeah."

Young Joon "Even if this restaurant is the best Italian restaurant in Japan? Does it make sense?"

Kida "Well, if they're that determined about it, then we cannot stop them now."

Satoshi "How about Chef? He could persuade them to stay, right?"

Hyun Woo "Do you think it's his personality to persuade? He'll just let them go."

Kida "But, he's not bad as you thought."

_The chefs were surprised all of a sudden._

Kida "Later, you will be able to understand him. I'm sure of it." _She smiled warmly._

_After a while, Yusuke, Takeshi and Shin entered the kitchen with Meguru to bid farewell to everyone._

Kida "Guys..."

Satoshi "Are you really leaving?"

Shin "We will miss you, Satoshi!"

Yusuke "Yes. There's no kitchen assistant in the world that as good and as awesome as you!"

Satoshi "So why leave if you're saying that?"

_The three went quiet._

Meguru "Take care, everyone. Wherever you go, just remember the importance and motivation of being a chef. I'm sure you will be able to handle things very well."

Shin "T-Thank you, Chef."

Yusuke "Thank you for not despising us, Chef."

Takeshi "Thanks for understanding, Chef."

Seung Yoo "But still, how could they do this to us? I mean, they're already in the best restaurant." _He whispered._

Kida "They have their own reasons, so let's just respect them, okay? Besides, being in the best restaurant and the like does not have anything to do with your passion for cooking. As long as it's a simple kitchen, but you feel like it's a home for you and you fully enjoy what you do, then that will do." _She smiled at him._

Seung Yoo "Yes... Chef."

* * *

_After the three chefs said goodbye, the remaining chefs were bothered about the situation._

Hyun Woo "Chef, what are we going to do now? We're obviously lacking in manpower."

Young Joon "He's right. We cannot handle things right now."

_Kida looked at Meguru, waiting for his response._

Meguru "No need to worry. I have brought some replacements."

Satoshi "Really, Chef?" _He exclaimed._

Meguru "Yes. Please enter." _He talked at the door._

_Kida was astonished to see Haruhito and Satoru entered the kitchen._

Kida "Haruhito! Satoru!"

Haruhito "Hiya!"

Satoru "How are you, Kida?" _They smiled at each other._

* * *

_Everyone was busy preparing for dinner._

Satoru "Chef, I heard that our restaurant was reserved during the whole dinner time."

Meguru "Really? How many people?"

Satoru "You see..." _He glanced at Kida, making sure she's busy._

Meguru "What is it, Satoru?"

Satoru "It's been reserved by Sayuri alone." _He whispered at him._

Meguru "What?!"

_The chefs looked back at him._

Kida "What's wrong, Chef?"

_Meguru closed his fist in anger._

Satoru "What if Kida finds out? She still doesn't know about this, right?"

_A waiter entered the kitchen._

Waiter "Chef, the VIP guest has arrived."

Kida "VIP guest?"

Satoshi "Only one?"

Meguru "Get the order, then."

Waiter "Yes, Chef."

Satoru "What are you planning to do?"

Meguru "Since Sayuri came all the way here, I'm going to tell Kida the truth now. It will turn out fine. I'm not with Sayuri anymore, so..."

Satoru "Meguru..."

Waiter "Chef, here are the VIP's orders." _He gave the paper stab to Meguru._

Meguru "Ricotta and Spinach cannelloni, one. Linguini Fruiti di Mare, one. Rocket Salad, two. Parmigiana chicken, two. Bruschetta, two. House Cheese Cake, two."

All "Yes, Chef!"

Kida "(A full-course meal for two? But the guest is only one person.)"

Waiter "Chef, another request from the customer."

_Kida was listening carefully while slicing the plum tomatoes._

Waiter "The executive chef should serve all the orders."

Hyun Woo "Whoa, isn't he a bit demanding? How could he make Chef do that?!"

Satoshi "Chef, don't. There are plenty of waiters outside. They can do that."

Seung Yoo "He's right, Chef."

_Meguru was trying hard to hide his anger._

Kida "(Personally served by Meguru, huh?)"

_She hurriedly prepared two Bruschetta servings and carried the plates without presenting it to Meguru._

Haruhito "H-Hey, Chef! Where are you going?"

Meguru "Kida-"

Satoru "This is bad, Meguru!"

Haruhito "What do you mean?"

_The chefs were looking at Meguru._

* * *

_At the dining hall, Kida was shocked to see her own sister, Sayuri, waiting patiently._

Kida "(W-What is she doing here?!)"

_She approached Sayuri's table, which made the latter even shocked._

Sayuri "S-Sis...!"

_Kida placed the plates on the table and sat down confidently in front of Sayuri._

Sayuri "Sis... What... are you doing here...?"

Kida "It's been a while, Sayuri." _She smirked at her while her eyes turned fiery red._


	14. Chapter 14

_Kida's smirk has vanished and a furious face has appeared._

Sayuri "Sis... Could you please tell me what's going on?"

_She smiled sarcastically this time, while her fiery red eyes has kept intact._

Kida "I will be your personal server tonight. But before that, you can have our appetizer first. I personally cooked it for you."

Sayuri "Are you... a chef here?"

_Kida smiled._

Kida "Can't you tell by looking at my white uniform? This suits me perfectly, right?"

_Sayuri took a deep breath, as if not knowing what to say._

Sayuri "A-Are you mad at me?" _She was anxious._

Kida "Hmm, I won't if you'll explain to me what's going on." _She drank a glass of red wine calmly._

* * *

Haruhito "What? Sayuri is the VIP?"

Satoru "We have to do something!"

Satoshi "Um, can I ask what's going on?"

Meguru "Nothing. Please continue what you're doing."

Satoshi "Yes, Chef." _He looked at him puzzled._

Haruhito "Hey Meguru, does Kida have any idea?"

Meguru "No."

Haruhito "Then why did she went outside? She did not even come back."

Satoru "I'll check outside." _He hurriedly headed off outside the kitchen._

_Meguru's face went pale._

* * *

_While the waiters and waitresses continued to observe the two sisters, Kida went on her conversation with Sayuri._

Kida "Could you tell me about your life in Solaire, Your Highness? I'm curious about how a princess lives in the palace."

Sayuri "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to steal your identity."

Kida "Really?"

Sayuri "I mean it! How's Mom?"

Kida "You don't have the right to ask about her."

Sayuri "Sis, please don't be like this to me."

Kida "Never mind about the princess life. What I'm dying to know is, why are you here? Why did you occupy the entire restaurant?"

_She paused for a while before proceeding to speak._

Kida "Why do you want our executive chef to personally serve you? Is it because... you're a princess? Or there's something else...?"

_Sayuri was stunned._

_At the back, Satoru heard everything and asked the waiter nearby to operate the phone for him. He presented Kakeru's phone number to the waiter and the latter dialed it._

Satoru "Hello? Kakeru? This is Satoru!"

**On the phone:**_ Kakeru "Yes, what's the matter?"_

Satoru "Come to the restaurant right now, hurry!"

_Kakeru "What? Why all of a sudden?"_

Satoru "Meguru's in big trouble! And also, please contact Prince Rui for me. Bring Shiki with you, too. We need him."

_Kakeru "Seriously, Satoru. Could you tell me what's going on there? I don't understand a single thing!"_

Satoru "There's not enough time. Hurry! Bye." _He hung up and hurriedly went back to the kitchen._

* * *

Haruhito "What's happening outside?"

Satoru "Meguru... Did you know that Kida is Sayuri's older sister?"

_Meguru and Haruhito were very shocked._

Meguru "W-What did you say, Satoru?"

Satoru "I know, right? I was shocked about it, too! I heard Sayuri addressed her as 'Sis'!"

Haruhito "Uh oh." _He looked at Meguru._

Satoru "Don't worry, I called Kakeru and Prince Rui already."

Haruhito "Why Prince Rui?"

Satoru "You will know if you have witnessed Kida's furious face there."

Meguru "This won't do."

Haruhito "Meguru, what are you planning to do right now, huh?"

Meguru "I can't hide myself anymore. I'll settle this."

Satoru "But wait for Kakeru first!"

_Meguru rushed outside the kitchen._

Seung Yoo "Seriously, what the hell is going on?" _He whispered while continued stirring the vegetables._

Hyun Woo "No idea."

* * *

Kida "Why aren't you answering me?"

_Sayuri was terrified._

Kida "Sayuri."

_Sayuri felt relieved when she saw Meguru._

Sayuri "Meguru!"

_Kida was stunned to hear her casually calling him. Sayuri stood up and went near Meguru._

Sayuri "Meguru..." _She clung onto him._

_Kida looked at them in horror._

Meguru "Kida..."

Sayuri "It's because of him, Sis. I reserved the whole place for him. I want to have dinner together with him."

Kida "Do you know her, Meguru?" _Her red eyes widened._

Meguru "Kida, let me explain."

Sayuri "Explain what? What are you trying to do?"

_Kakeru, Shiki and Rui arrived at the restaurant._

Kida "Why do you know her, Meguru?!" _She raised her voice._

Meguru "Kida, please calm. Don't be like this, okay?"

Sayuri "What do you think you are doing?!"

Rui "Kida..." _Rui was surprised to see the tension among the three._

Kida "Sayuri, why are you like this?"

Sayuri "Meguru is my ex! We dated when we were in Italy years ago. Satisfied?! You? What are you to him? Why are you reacting that way?"

Meguru "Sayuri, please shut up!"

Sayuri "No!"

_Kida remained dumbfounded as she stood still._

Sayuri "Now's your time to answer my question, Sis. Who are you to him?!"

_Kakeru and Rui were tensed as they're watching._

Kida "He's my past lover." _She stated in a calm voice._

Sayuri "W-What?!"

_Kakeru and Shiki looked at Rui anxiously. During that time, Rui remembered what Kida has said in the competition._

**Flashback**

Kida "A person left me for his dream to become a great chef. The reason why I want to become a chef is, I want to personally witness what a chef can do. I want to understand his reason for leaving me."

**End of the flashback**

Rui "(So that person was... Meguru?)"

Sayuri "It can't be. It can't be!"

Kida "Yeah! It can't be!" _She screamed furiously._

Meguru "Kida, forgive me for not telling this to you. I really didn't mean to hide this from you, but-"

Kida "Sayuri, when I saw you wearing the princess' wardrobe, I didn't bother you anymore. I stopped my will to reclaim my title as the princess of Solaire. I have let you enjoy that. However, when you also stole Meguru from me during that time, I... I..." _Her tears fell on her face._

Meguru "Kida..."

Kida "I... I couldn't forgive you at all! No, I will never forgive you!" _She screamed as the strong aura was released spontaneously._

Rui "Kida!"

Kida "You have no idea what I had gone through because of you!"

_Her psychic abilities dominated the whole dining area. The strong wind entered the dining room and small breakable decors were breaking. The humans were screaming as they hid themselves from the chaos._

Meguru "Stop it, Kida. Please!" _He approached her, but the force is too strong and he even failed to went near her._

_Kida was out of control; she began to raise the heavy dining table and threw it to Sayuri, but Meguru destroyed the table in time._

Kakeru "Let's stop her! At any rate, she will be able to destroy the entire restaurant!"

_Sayuri was horrified as she was watching her sister's wrath. Meguru tried to approach her again, but this time, she lifted up his whole body using her psychic power and threw him on the wall._

Sayuri "Meguru!"

_Kida threw Sayuri on the wall as well._

Satoru "Meguru! Are you alright?!"

Meguru "I-I'm fine. Please help Kida..."

_Rui tried to come near her while she continued destroying things._

Rui "Stop it, Kida. Please, don't be in pain anymore! I'm already here! You'll be fine."

Kakeru "Rui! She's still dangerous! Don't come near her!"

Rui "Everything will be okay." _He gently smiled as he offered his arms to her. He successfully hugged her to stop her power, but eventually he was thrown on the wall, too._

Kakeru "Rui!"

_Rui accidentally hit the table's leg and the vase suddenly dropped on his head, knocking him unconscious._

Kakeru "Rui! Rui!"

_Upon hearing Rui's name being desperately called, Kida finally came to her senses._

Satoru "He's bleeding! Let's go to Demon Realm's infirmary for now!"

_Kida was very shocked to see the mess she caused, especially when she saw Rui unconscious._

Kida "Rui..."

_The demons turned back at her._

Kida "Rui!" _She rushed towards him._

Kakeru "We have to treat him as soon as possible."

Kida "I'm sorry, Rui! I'm sorry!" _She burst out crying._

Haruhito "You too, Meguru, Sayuri." _He helped them stood up._

Meguru "Are you okay?"

Sayuri "My head hurts..." _She held her head tightly._

Shiki "Leave the humans to me. I'll follow you after this."

Kakeru "Got it, Shiki."

Kida "Rui!" _She clasped his hand with hers._

* * *

_Kida, Kakeru and Satoru carrying Rui, Meguru and Sayuri were on their way to Demon Realm._

Kida "Why not bring him back to Angel Realm?"

Kakeru "Are you crazy? If the Angel Palace knows about him being injured and it's caused by a demon like you, then you'll be in danger."

Kida "Then, are you sure he won't be find out in our place instead?"

Kakeru "Don't worry, I can secretly let him stay in our infirmary."

Sayuri "Meguru, you do not look good." _She tightly held onto him._

_Kida was not wavered and she focused only on Rui._

* * *

**~Restaurant~**

Haruhito "Are you done mind-controlling all of them, Sheeks?"

Shiki "Yeah. That was tiring. Are you done already? Let's hurry back home and sleep."

Haruhito "Unfortunately, not yet. I'm still waiting for my men."

Shiki "Oh, here they are."

_The demons approached Haruhito._

Haruhito "Every single furniture and decors that were destroyed, please find some replacements for them. Oh, you have to look for exactly the same as them. Be sure to bring all of them here before 8 AM tomorrow."

Demons "Yes, Sir."

Shiki "You're awesome, Haru."

Haruhito "What do you mean by that? I'll make sure that Meguru and Kida will pay me. They have caused this mess, you know?"

Shiki "Sheesh, silly you." _He smiled._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

Kida "Doctor, he will be fine, right?"

Doctor "Yes, his wound in the head is fortunately shallow, so you can relax a little bit now. He will gain consciousness after he obtains enough rest."

_She let out a big sigh of relief._

Kakeru "That's good news. Thanks, Doctor."

Doctor "Yes, Your Highness."

_Kida sat beside the bed and held Rui's hand gently._

Kida "I'm sorry, this is all my fault."

Kakeru "Not really, Kida. I fully understand you."

Kida "How's Meguru? I apologize for hurting him, too."

Kakeru "I was about to go there now. Aren't you going to ask about your sister?"

_She stared at Kakeru plainly._

* * *

_Meguru was lying on the bed while Satoru and Sayuri were watching him._

Meguru "How about you? Are you still hurt?"

Sayuri "I'm fine now."

_Kakeru entered the room._

Meguru "Brother."

Kakeru "How are you feeling?"

Meguru "I'm better now. How about Prince Rui?"

Kakeru "He's safe now, but he's still unconscious."

Meguru "How about Kida?"

_Sayuri looked at him, surprised._

Kakeru "She's watching Rui."

Meguru "I'm sorry. This is my fault."

Kakeru "You know, blaming yourselves won't solve a single thing. If all of you are better, talk about it well."

Meguru "Yeah..."

* * *

_The next day..._

_Rui slowly opened his eyes and was surprised to see Kida resting her head on the bed. He gently pet her head, which caused her to wake up._

Kida "Rui! Are you okay?! Does it hurt?!"

Rui "I'm fine. Where am I?"

Kida "We're here in Demon Realm infirmary. Rui, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you like this. It's just that my mind went blank suddenly and I couldn't remember anything after that. I even couldn't remember what I had done last night. I'm sorry."

Rui "I'm sorry for not knowing you had suffered so much pain." _He looked worriedly._

_She shook her head._

Kida "You knew everything already, right?"

Rui "Yeah, I heard everything. Even your real identity. I don't know what happened, but what are you planning to do now? Are you going to go back to Solaire as the princess?"

Kida "I'm not sure about that. The important thing is for you to get better. I want to stay by your side as much as possible."

Rui "Don't worry about me too much. This is only a scratch."

Kida "A scratch? Even so, I have to take care of you. But Rui, I didn't mean to hide my past with Meguru. It's just that I thought it was unnecessary for me to share it with you."

Rui "Kida, every unsettled thing is still necessary, no matter how hard you hide it, no matter how painful it is. If there's a need to settle, then that's the right thing for you to do. I don't mind you talking about it with Meguru."

Kida "Rui..."

Rui "However, settle it all at once. I don't want you to keep talking with him."

Kida "Sheesh, how could you be jealous in that state?"

Rui "What? I may be injured, but I'm still your betrothed."

Kida "Oh, come on." _She grinned._

Rui "I'm glad you smiled."

Kida "Huh?"

Rui "Because last night you're so scary to the point that I couldn't recognize you anymore."

Kida "How mean!" _She hit his arm involuntarily._

Rui "Ouch!"

Kida "What?! Are you hurt? I'm sorry! I forgot- Hey! I didn't hit you in your head so why react?"

Rui "But my arm is hurting, too."

Kida "You're playing with me right now?"

_The two were playfully teasing each other. Outside the room, Meguru left quietly after he saw them._

* * *

_In his room, Meguru was preparing himself to leave the infirmary._

Satoru "Are you sure you're going back to work now?"

Meguru "Yes. The restaurant won't function without me."

Kakeru "How about your shoulder?"

Meguru "I'm fine now. I can work again. Where's Sayuri?"

Kakeru "She went back to Solaire."

Satoru "Come to think of it. Kida is the real princess of Solaire, and her sister is just a fraud."

Kakeru "I was surprised about it, too."

Meguru "Did she leave without talking to her sister?"

Kakeru "It seems so."

Meguru "That's Sayuri. Now, I have to talk to Kida. I really have to settle this."

_Kakeru patted his shoulder showing a support._

* * *

_Kida bought a bottled water on the vending machine as Meguru approached her._

Kida "Oh... You're okay now?"

Meguru "Yes."

Kida "Sorry for hurting you, Meguru."

Meguru "Don't worry, I deserve more than that, to be honest."

Kida "Stop saying that. (It hurts.)"

Meguru "Um, can we talk for a while?"

* * *

_Meguru and Kida were sitting together on the garden bench._

Meguru "Kida, please forgive me for everything."

Kida "What else can I do? Besides, I have no right not to forgive anyone."

Meguru "I really have no idea about you and Sayuri. She didn't even mention about you back then."

Kida "I see."

Meguru "How did you two separate?"

Kida "When she has stolen my title as the princess. She left Mom and me."

Meguru "Is that so?"

Kida "It's my turn to ask you a question."

Meguru "Go ahead."

Kida "Why did you leave me?" _She stared sadly._

Meguru "Because of your sister. I was very overwhelmed when I first met her in Italy. She's very interested in culinary arts like me; so I thought, we can relate to each other easily. She won't get bored about it all day. And my thoughts were exactly right."

Kida "In other words, you left me because I was the opposite of her?"

Meguru "I was very focused on being a chef and I wasn't able to weigh things between us. Back then, when it comes to cooking, I was only looking straight in my path. I don't have time to look around and take a detour, just straight. I didn't reconsider you. In other words, I love cooking more than you. That was me before. However, when I was taking the straight path, I have felt that it was rather empty. Long before I realized that my life has become dull without you. It has lost its color and harmony."

_Kida remained quiet as she was holding back her tears._

Meguru "I am regretting that decision until now, Kida. I'm really sorry. It is really you, the woman I love so deeply." _His eyes were filled by tears._

Kida "Meguru..."

Meguru "It's not yet too late, right? I can still take you back, right?"

_Their conversation was halted when a bunch of demon soldiers approached them._

Meguru "Who are you?"

Demon Soldier "Your Highness." _He addressed Kida._

_Meguru was surprised as he looked at her._

Demon Soldier "Her Royal Highness, His Royal Majesty the King has ordered us to bring you back to Solaire."

_The other soldiers knelt before Kida, while she was left dazed._


	15. Chapter 15

**Flashback**

**~Solaire~**

Kouyuu "Your Majesty, I found Lady Ryoko! She's in Demon Realm!"

King "Really? Let's go there right now!"

Kouyuu "Yes, Your Majesty." _He followed the king outside the palace hall._

* * *

**~Demon Realm~**

_Wearing commoner's clothes, the king, Kouyuu and their bodyguards arrived at Kida's house's front door. Kouyuu rang the doorbell. After a while, Ryoko opened the door._

Ryoko "Who are you?"

Kouyuu "Lady Ryoko, correct?"

Ryoko "H-How did you know my name?"

_The crown prince went beside the front door, thus revealing the king in front of her._

Ryoko "Y-Your Majesty!" _She exclaimed._

King "How have you been, Ryoko?" _He gently smiled at her._

* * *

Ryoko "It's a shock for you to visit my place, Your Majesty. How may I help you?"

King "How are you living here?"

Ryoko "I'm doing good. Demon Realm is a peaceful one."

King "That's good to hear then. I assume that my daughter is doing good as well."

_She was surprised, and didn't respond to him._

King "Where is my daughter? Where is the Solaire princess?"

Ryoko "Your Majesty... You're living with the princess, right?"

King "Don't put a joke on me! I know you're the one who sent me the petition." _He yelled._

Ryoko "Um..."

King "Where is my daughter, Ryoko? What is her name?"

_She sighed heavily before speaking._

Ryoko "Her name is Kida Akina."

_She took out Kida's photo and presented it to the king._

Ryoko "She is your daughter."

_The king was dumbfounded while staring at the photo._

**End of the flashback**

* * *

Meguru "Are you going to go with them, Kida?"

Kida "I need to settle this. I'll be right back. Please inform Rui about this as well. Thanks, Meguru." _She said as she gazed at him seriously._

Royal Soldier "Come with us, Your Highness."

_Kida turned back to Meguru before riding on the flying palanquin. After that, she, together with the soldiers, left the realm._

* * *

**~Solaire~**

Royal Guard "This way, Your Highness."

_The soldiers led Kida on the way to the palace._

Guard "Make way! Make way! The real princess of Solaire is coming!"

_The people inside the palace of Solaire were murmuring here and there._

Man "Real princess, he says?"

Woman "Does it mean, the previous princess is fake?"

_Inside her room, Sayuri was shocked as she heard it outside._

Sayuri "No way..."

* * *

_While Kida was entering the palace hall, Kouyuu welcomed her._

Kouyuu "Your Highness."

Kida "Y-You! You're the one who helped me back then!"

Kouyuu "Yes, I am. I'm glad that you even remembered me."

_The ministers were surprised as they were looking at her._

Kouyuu "Your Majesty, the princess... I mean, the real princess has arrived."

_Kida looked at the king in amusement._

Kida "(So he's the king. My real father...)"

King "Nice to meet you, my daughter." _He smiled happily at her._

Kida "Y-Your Majesty."

King "I'm sorry for not knowing you sooner than today. I'm really sorry."

_She remained quiet, not knowing what to say._

King "I guess you're in shock today. I'm sorry about that."

Kida "To be honest, Your Majesty... I have known already about my real identity."

_The king and others were stunned._

King "W-What? You already have an idea of who you really are?"

Kida "Yes. My apologies for not telling you, Your Majesty. It's because-"

Sayuri "What is this, Your Majesty?!"

_Everyone looked back at Sayuri, who barged inside the hall furiously. Kida stared at her sister as the latter glared at her. _

_King "Lock Sayuri inside her room!" _

_Sayuri "How sure are you that she's the real and I'm the fake? I have Mom's golden necklace!" _

_King "Then tell me what should I believe, that golden necklace or your own mother's statement?" _

_Sayuri was dazed. The ministers and other palace officials were murmuring to each other. _

_Sayuri "M-Mother...? Have you met her?" She inquired anxiously. _

_King "Yes, I did. I was about to exterminate you right away but I considered your mother's plea and also your sister's feelings. The real princess' feelings." _

_Once again, the people inside the hall were shocked as they kept on talking with each other. _

_Sayuri "No... It can't be. I am the princess of Solaire! I am!" She yelled in despair. _

_Kida "Stop believing your lies, Sayuri!" _

_Sayuri "No! How could you do this to me, Kida? How could you ruin your own sister's life?!" _

_Kida "Hey!" She exclaimed. _

_King "Silence!" He growled angrily. _

_The palace went quiet. _

_King "Do you really want me to show you the fake and the real, Sayuri?" _

_Sayuri didn't respond. _

_King "Get me two buckets of water." He ordered the eunuch and his gaze returned to Kida and Sayuri. _

_Eunuch "Yes, Your Majesty." _

_The two ladies were quite shocked. _

_After a while, the eunuch returned with two buckets of water. _

_King "Good. Prince Kouyuu, come down and get the other bucket." _

_Kouyuu "Yes, Your Majesty." He went down the platforms and stood behind the bucket._

_Sayuri "What are you going to do, Your Majesty?" _

_The king stood up from his seat and announced a royal command. _

_King "This is a royal command!" _

_Everyone knelt and bowed as they heard the king. _

_King "Kida and Sayuri, I want you to stand up and spread your wings." _

_Kida slowly got up from the floor, while Sayuri was hesitant to do so. _

_King "Sayuri!" _

_Left with no choice, Sayuri stood up. Then they spread their black and white wings together. Without further ado, Kouyuu and the king's eunuch splashed the ladies with water. _

_The people left surprised about the sudden actions. _

_Minister "Whoa... Look at Sayuri's wings! The white accents are fading!" _

_Official "They sure are! It means she's really a fraud!" _

_Minister 2 "How dare she deceived His Majesty?!" _

_Sayuri was dumbfounded when she saw with her own eyes the white paints started to fade away. Kida's white accents remained after being drenched in water, hence a proof that she's the real princess. _

_Sayuri "No... No!" She screamed in exasperation. _

_Minister 1 "Your Majesty, lying to you is considered as treason. Extermination is the only punishment applicable to that crime. Exterminate her!" _

_Minister 2 "Hear us, Your Majesty! Hear the cries of your people! Deceiving His Majesty is also deceiving the whole kingdom. Exterminate her!" _

_The people followed the ministers by saying 'exterminate her' repeatedly. _

_Sayuri shut her eyes in terror. _

_Kida "Your Majesty, please don't. You can send her off the kingdom, but please reconsider my mother's feelings." _

_Minister 3 "Your Highness, how could you set her free? Your rightful place had been stolen from you. Aren't you furious?" _

_Minister 4 "Your Highness, let's say you said that because she's your sister. The question is, did she ever consider you as her sister? As her own blood? Never! That's why it's just right for her to be exterminated!" _

_The people said repeatedly their request again. _

_The king raised his left hand, thus the people stopped talking. _

_King "Imprison Sayuri in her room until my decision is final." _

_The royal guards grabbed Sayuri away from the hall. _

_Sayuri "Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" She screamed for help. _

_Kida looked down without taking a single glance at her sister._

* * *

Kida and the king went inside his chambers.

King "How are you feeling, Kida?"

Kida "Truthfully, I don't know, Your Majesty."

King "I'm sorry for not being able to find you sooner. I was blind believing the deception. If it's not because of your mother, I would have gone all the way without knowing my real daughter." He tightly held her hands.

Kida "Not at all, Your Majesty. It's not yor fault. I apologize for not letting you know, too."

King "Don't worry, I will proclaim you as the Solaire Princess as early as tomorrow. I will let the whole world know that you're the real princess, my real daughter."

Kida "Your Majesty... You see..."

King "What is it?"

Kida "I'm not really into the throne."

The king was surprised.

King "You don't want to be a princess?"

Kida "Yes. I already have something I wanted to fulfill."

King "Is that so? What is it then?"

Kida "To become a successful chef."

King "A chef?" He asked amusingly.

Kida "Yes, Your Majesty."

The king smiled without saying anything.

Kida "Your Majesty?"

King "Then, what do you want me to do about Solaire?"

Kida was quite surprised.

King "You know the current status of the kingdom. The Demon Prince was coming back and forth here just to persuade me to join the Demon Realm. Now tell me, what is the right thing to do for our kingdom?"

Kida "Your Majesty, I prefer to join the Demon Realm. I believe that Solaire will do well under their reign."

King "How could you say so?"

Kida "Because I've known the Demon Prince for so long already. I'm confident that he will do great as the next Demon King."

King "Hmm. You're far from your sister." He smiled warmly.

Kida "Huh?"

King "Thanks to you, I realize that family is more important than anything in this world."

Kida "Does it mean..."

King "Yes, I'm going to give up the throne and give Solaire to Demon Realm. This is the best I can do for our people and for ourselves."

Kida "R-Really?"

King "Yes. I'm going to live with you and your mother as ordinary demons."

Kida "Y-Your Majesty... But, how about His Highness?"

King "Don't worry, Kouyuu has the same decision as yours. I believe he can be one of the ministers in Demon Realm."

She smiled happily at her father.

Kida "Your Majesty, can you grant me a request?"

King "Yes, go ahead."

Kida "You can do anything to Sayuri; send her away, imprison her for a few years, but please refrain from exterminate her."

The king looked at her seriously.

* * *

Kida visited Sayuri inside the prison cell.

Kida "Sayuri-"

She was startled to see Sayuri pointing a knife at her neck.

Kida "Sayuri!" Her arms went inside the bars and reached Sayuri's hand holding a knife. She held it tightly while pulling away from her neck.

Sayuri "Let me die! Let me die!" She screamed.

Kida "Running away?! I won't let you run away that easily!" She struggled to snatch the knife from her.

Sayuri "Let me die! Go away!"

Kida "No!" She successfully taken away the knife from her hand.

Sayuri "Give me that back!" Her swollen eyes glared at Kida.

Kida "How could you only think of yourself up to this point?!"

Sayuri went near the bars and faced Kida.

Sayuri "You might as well kill me since you already have the knife. This is what you want, right?" She smirked.

Kida "No."

Her strong answer shocked Sayuri.

Kida "I want you to suffer just like I did! No, you must suffer more than I did. Live that way and suffer!" Her screamed echoed the whole prison.

Kida left the prison with the knife, while Sayuri broke down into tears.

* * *

The next day, Kakeru arrived at the Solaire palace. He was faced by the king, Prince Kouyuu, Princess Kida and other high-ranking officials.

King "Thank you for saving our Solaire, Prince Kakeru."

Kakeru "You won't regret this important decision, Your Majesty." And the two shook hands.

Everyone in the palace gave them an applause. Kakeru looked at Kida and smiled, while the latter did the same.

* * *

**~Human Realm~**

Kida happily entered the kitchen.

Kida "Good morning, everyone!"

Haruhito "Hey, Kida! I-I mean, Chef! It's nice to see you back!"

Satoru "How are you?"

The Korean chefs also greeted her after her one day of absence.

Kida "I'm okay now. It's good to be back again."

Haruhito and Satoru grabbed her.

Kida "W-What?"

Haruhito "I heard from Kakeru that you only became a one-day princess. How could you do that? It's a waste, really."

Satoru "Right. You also influenced the king to surrender Solaire to Demon Realm."

Kida "Come on! I only did what I could do as the princess. Besides, I'm happy being a chef now. This is what I really want to become."

Haruhito "I see. Anyways, how's Prince Rui?"

Kida "He's doing well now. We talked yesterday."

Suddenly, Meguru entered the kitchen and the other chefs greeted him.

Satoru "Meguru is here."

Meguru looked at her, surprised.

Meguru "You're back." He smiled sweetly at her.

Kida "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "Are the preparations done?"

All "Yes, Chef!"

Meguru "Okay, let's-"

? "Chef!"

Everyone turned around to see who went inside.

Kida "Rui?!"

Meguru and the others were shocked.

Rui "I came back, Chef, everyone. You're lacking one chef, right?" He smiled sweetly.

Hyun Woo "In that case, welcome back, Chef Rui!"

Satoshi "Welcome back, Chef!"

Meguru "Is that so? Okay, you can start working again today. It's a good thing you returned. However, Chef Kida will remain as Sous Chef. Would that be okay?"

Rui "Yes, Chef."

Meguru "Great. Since we don't have any problems anymore, let's get started."

All "Yes, Chef!"

Kida "Rui..." She smiled cheerfully.

Rui "Are you that happy to see me?" He whispered.

Kida nodded with a happy grin on her face.

Rui "All right."

He glanced at serious Meguru.

Rui "(I know you're not happy to see me here, Meguru; but since Kida is working with you here, I won't stay still.)"

* * *

Meguru announced the first batch of orders for lunch.

Meguru "Lastly, two full course meals set A."

All "Yes, Chef!"

The waiter entered the busy kitchen.

Waiter "Chef."

Meguru turned back and approached him.

Meguru "What is it?"

Waiter "Chef, the customers who ordered the two full course meals, they are food bloggers and critics."

Meguru "Really?"

Waiter "I heard them talking about it when I served them some water and wine."

Meguru "Got it. Thanks for notifying us."

The waiter exited the kitchen afterwards.

Meguru "Who is in charge of the full course meals?"

Kida "Me, Chef."

Meguru "I'll help you prepare it. They are food critics so we must do our best to get good reviews."

Kida "Y-Yes, Chef." She answered hesitantly.

Rui "I can do it, Chef." He butted in.

Meguru "It's okay, Rui. You can continue on doing your dishes."

Rui "I've prepared a lot of full course meals before so I can really do it, Chef."

Meguru "Then are you saying that an executive chef cannot prepare these full course meals which sous chefs can prepare?" He asked, irritated.

Other chefs stopped cooking and turned around at them.

Rui and Meguru went quiet while shooting daggers at each other in front of Kida.


End file.
